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,-> 



Three Wonderlands 

of the 

American West 



By the Same Author 

British Highways and Byways 
From a Motor Car 

THIRD IMPRESSION 

WITH FORTY-EIGHT ILLUSTRATIONS 

AND TWO MAPS 

Sixteen Reproductions in Color, and Thirty-Two 

Duogravures 

320 Pages. 8vo, Decorated Cloth 

Price (Boxed), $3.00 



In UnfamiHar England 
With a Motor Car 

SECOND EDITION 

WITH SIXTY-FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS 

AND TWO MAPS 

Sixteen Reproductions in Color and Forty-Eight 

Duogravures 

400 Pages, 8vo, Decorated Cloth 

Price (Boxed), $3.00 



L. C PAGE & COMPANY 

BOSTON 



i 






THREE 
WDNDERIANDS 

OF THE 
AMERIC^JNJ WEST 



Being the notes of a traveler, concerning the Yellowstone Parle, 

the Yosemite National Park, and the Grand Canyon 

of the Colorado River, with a chapter on 

other wonders of the Great 

American West 



BY 

Thos. D. Murphy 

Author of "British Highways and Byways from a Motor Car 
"In Unfamiliar England," with a Motor Car, Etc. 



With sixteen reproductions in color from original paintings by 

Thomas Moran, N. A. 

and thirty-two duogravures from photographs. Also maps of 

the Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Grand 

Canyon regions 




BOSTON 

L. C. PAGE &. COMPANY 

MDCCCCXII 



■,¥.91 



Copyright, 1912 
By L. C. PAGE &, COMPANY 

(Incorporated) 

All Rights Reserved 

First Impression, January, 1912 



©CI.A30543G 



A Word Prefatory 

My own case was perhaps a typical one; I 
had read in a desultory manner of the grandeur 
and beauty of our Western wonderlands, and 
had listened to what I thought the rather too 
highly colored encomiums of friends who had 
visited them. Photographs and illustrations of 
the scenery are common enough, but no ade- 
quate conception of vastness can be gained from 
a picture; it can convey little idea of the un- 
measured abysms of these mountain vales and 
canyons, and of the fathomless blue heavens, 
pierced by titantic peaks, stretching away in dis- 
tances suggestive of infinity. I was only lan- 
gtiidly interested until it chanced my good 
fortune to see several original paintings by 
Thomas Moran, the wizard who comes nearer 
than anything excepting a personal visit in 
presenting to the eyes the true spirit of these 
wonderlands, and making one realize their 
glorious color and grandeur. I found myself 
wondering if it could be possible that there was 
such an enchanted land as he portrays — such a 



land of weird mountains, crystal cataracts and 
emerald rivers, all glowing with a riot of color 
that seems more like an iridescent dream than a 
sober reality. 

It may be on account of this very scepticism 
that thousands never see the most inspiring 
marvels of our own country. We question the 
fidelity of artist and word-painter, and spend 
our vacations in Europe or in some conventional 
resort hotel, while the great world of beauty 
and soul-stirring wonders of the American West 
remain undiscovered and unexplored so far as 
we are concerned. Or perhaps some are rather 
appalled at the vast distances they must cover 
by rail, and the discomforts — which prove more 
fanciful than real, after all — that they dread to 
undergo. Whatever the reason, there are but few 
thousands yearly who visit the Yellowstone, the 
Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, out of the 
millions who might find recreation and enjoy- 
ment in these virgin retreats of nature. 

However, it is refreshing to observe that 
the hegira to the wilderness is on the increase. 
The man or woman who takes a vacation trip, 
as a rest and relaxation, is learning that these 
boons are hardly to be found in crowded cities 
and fashion-hampered hotels. For real rest- 
fulness one must get near to nature, out under 
the unsullied skies, among the mountains, with 
their painted crags, towering pines and leaping 



streams; it matters not how many fellow-pil- 
grims may be bound to the same destination, 
there is always the sense of solitude in these 
virgin wildernesses, and always nooks where 
one may be as much alone as he wishes. And 
this is pre-eminently true of the wonderlands 
which I shall endeavor to describe, in whose 
bounds may be found perhaps a greater variety 
of strange natural phenomena and striking and 
beautiful scenery than in similar limits anywhere 
else in the entire world. So great are their 
dimensions that one is never crowded, even in 
the height of the season. The hotels and camps 
may be full, but the greatest number of visitors 
at any one time is but the merest handful in the 
pine-clad and rock-bound solitudes. Once away 
from the immediate vicinity of tent or inn, one 
may commune with nature quite alone and 
undisturbed. 



Note 

Acknowledgments are due to Mr. W. H. 
Simpson, of the Sante Fe Railway; to Mr. J. W. 
Stewart, of the Northern Pacific Railway; Mr. 
Chas. S. Fee, of the Southern Pacific Railway j 
Mr. D. E. Burley, of the Oregon Short Line; the 
Pillsbury Picture Co., of Oakland, Calif., and Mr. 
F. J. Haynes, the well known photographer of 
St. Paul, for the photographs which I have repro- 
duced in this book, and for other courtesies too 
numerous to mention. I am also under obliga- 
tion to Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., of Bos- 
ton, for the extensive quotation from John Muir's 
book, "Our National Parks," and to the Santa Fe 
Railway for numerous extracts from its various 
interesting publications. The copyrights of the 
original paintings by Thomas Moran, which are 
shown in this book, and which are reproduced by 
color photographic process, are owned by The 
Thos. D. Murphy Co., of Red Oak, Iowa, which 
concern controls all copyright privileges upon 
Mr. Moran's more recent pictures. 

THE AUTHOR. 



Contents 



The Yellowstone 

I. THE HIGHWAYS, THE CAMPS AND HOTELS 1 

II. NATURAL, WONDERS OF THE PARK— THE GEYSERS 

AND HOT SPRINGS • • 17 

III. NATURAL WONDERS OP THE PARK— THE LAKES 

AND RIVERS 21 

IV. NATURAL WONDERS OP THE PARK— THEJ CANYON, 

MT. WASHBURN AND TOW^R PALLS 29 

V. THE PAUNA AND PLORA OP THE PARK 43 

VL THE HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OP THE PARK 48 

The Yosemite 

L THE VALLEY AND THE MOUNTAINS 59 

II. UP GLACIER POINT TRAIL 67 

III. TO THE MARIPOSA GROVE 78 

IV. THE RETURN TO EL PORTAL 91 

V. GEOLOGY, HISTORY AND GENERAL INFORMATION.. 99 



The Grand Canyon 



I. A FIRST GLIMPSE OP THE GRAND CANYON 110 

II. DOWN BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL. ., 119 

III. AT THE EL TOVAR 127 

IV. THE DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION OP THE 

CANYON 135 

V. OTHER WONDERS OP THE CANYON REGION 147 

Other Wonders of the American West 162 



Illustrations 



Color Plates 

SENTINPJL, ROCK THROUGH THE PINES, YOSBMITE 

VALLEY 4 Frontispiece l^ 

TOWER CREEK, YELLOWSTONE PARK 11/^' 

CANYON OP THE' YELLOWSTONE RIVER 30*^ 

A PASSING SHOWER, CANYON OF THE YELLOW- 
STONE 32 *^ 

CASCADE FALLS, YOSEMITE PARK 59 t^ 

MORNING IN THE HIGH SIERRAS 94 *^ 

MORNING, GRAND CANYON HO ^^ 

A GLIMPSE OF THE GRAND CANYON 114 1^ 

BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL, GRAND CANYON 120 v^ 

THE INNER GORGE, GRAND CANYON 124 ^ 

MIST AFTER RAIN, GRAND CANYON 128-^ 

CLIFFS OF GREEN RIVE'R, UTAH 140 (^ 

ROCK TOWERS OF THE RIO VIRGIN, GRAND CAN- , 

YON 156 "^ 

TOLTE GORGE, COLORADO 162 '^ 

INDIANS BURNING POTTERY, LAGUNA, N. M 170*^ 

SUNRISE ON RUINS AT CUERNAVACA, OLD MEXICO. 174 v-^ 

Duogravures 

OLD FAITHFUL INN, YELLOWSTONE PARK 10 l^ 

ENTRANCE HALL, OLD FAITHFUL INN, YELLOW- 
STONE PARK , 12*^ 

OLD FAITHFUL GEYSER, YELLOWSTONE PARK 18^ 

GIANT GE'YSER, YELLOWSTONE PARK 20 ^ 

RAPIDS ABOVE UPPER FALLS, YELLOWSTONE j 

PARK 22*^ 

YELLOWSTONE LAKE FROM COLONIAL HOTEL, j 

YELLOWSTONE PARK 26 ''^ 

GREAT FALLS FROM BET,OW, YELLOWSTONE PARK 34 '^ 

JUPITER TERRACE, YELLOWSTONE PARK 38 i'' 

ROAD THROUGH GOLDEN GATE CANYON, YELLOW- 
STONE PARK 40 t^ 

THE' DOMES, YOSEMITE PARK 60 / 



BRIDAL VKIL MEADOW, TOSBMITE VAX.LET 62 

EL. CAPITAN, YOSEMITE VALLEY 64 

MIRROR LAKE, YOSEMITE VALLEY 68 

NEVADA FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 70 

VERNAL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 72 

TWILIGHT, YOSEMITE VALLEY 74 

VERNAL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 76 

OVERHANGING ROCK, YOSEMITE VALLEY 78 

"GRIZZLY GIANT," MARIPOSA GROVE, CALIFORNIA 84 
"VERMONT" AND "WAWONA," MARIPOSA GROVE, 

CALIFORNIA 86 

BRIDAL VEIL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 92 

YOSEMITE' FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 96 v* 



A BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL PARTY — GRAND CANYON. 122 



y 



VIEW FROM TERRACE, EL TOVAR, GRAND CANYON 130 V' 

NEAR EL TOVAR, GRAND CANYON 132 '"^ 

THE INNER GORGE, GRAND CANYON 136 ^ 

LOOKING NORTH FROM GRAND VIEW POINT, 

GRAND CANYON 144 ^ 

SUNSET, GRAND CANYON 152 V*^ 

SAN GABRIEL MISSION, CALIFORNIA 164 V 

CLOISTERS, CAPISTRANO MISSION, CALIFORNIA 166 v^ 

THE CETVLETBRY GARDEN, SANTA BARBARA MIS- 

SION, CALIFORNIA 168 >^ 

MT. RAINIER-TACOMA REFLECTED IN SPANAWAY / 

LAKE 172"^ 

Maps 

YELLOWSTONE" NATIONAL PARK 50 

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK 100 

GRAND CANYON REGION 160 




TOWER CREEK. YELLOWSTONE PARK 

From the Original Painting by Thomas Moran, N. A. 



The Yellowstone 



I 

THE HIGHWAYS, THE CAMPS AND HOTELS 

The Government of the United States 
builded far better than it knew when by Act of 
Congress this wonderful region was set aside — 
sacred from the ax of the woodman, the deadly 
rifle of the hunter, the shriek of the railway 
engine and the dash and dust of the motor car 
— for "the benefit and enjoyment of the people." 
Like many another, I had queried, ere my visit, 
why the trip might not be shortened and made 
easier by the introduction of the trolley car or 
automobile, but the trip itself is the most sufli- 
cient answer. Enthusiast as I am for the 
winged wheels, I am glad they are banned and 
barred in Yellowstone Park. I rejoice that 
there is one spot still sacred to the old order of 
things — where you may have the solitude of the 
days of '49, where your old Concord coach-and- 
four rolls up to your inn as it did in the halcyon 
days of half a century ago, and where we may 
see the old-time Wild West as our fathers saw 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

it. It may be a rather subdued and convention- 
alized Wild West, it is true — the Indians with 
anything but hostile intent watching your train 
as it glides through the little stations on the 
way, and you are forcibly reminded of the dif- 
ferent state of affairs, but yesterday, as it were, 
when you pass within full view of the melan- 
choly rows of stones marking the site of Custer's 
last battle. The wild animals in the confines of 
the Park hardly deserve the adjective; when 
some timid deer looks mildly at you from among 
the trees, hardly caring to get out of your way, 
or when some big friendly brown bear sidles up 
to you and takes a morsel out of your hand you 
think rather of menagerie animals than denizens 
of the wild. How tame everything seems con- 
trasted with the exploits of our childhood heroes 
in this same Wild West! And in the really 
excellent and in some cases unique hotels in the 
Park, one finds the very antithesis of the 
humble shack — more saloon than inn — that at 
rare intervals offered hospitality to the western 
wayfarer of olden days. 

But in nothing has the change been more 
marked than in the system of transportation 
that has brought this once remote region to our 
very doors. A day and two nights in a Pullman 
car, gliding over the splendid road-beds of the 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

several west-bound railways, takes one from 
Chicago to the Yellowstone. If the Northern 
Pacific is chosen, one wakes in the morning to 
find himself at the beautiful and capacious Liv- 
ingston station, and a ride of two or three hours 
along the rapid river brings the great arch of 
the Gardiner entrance in sight. Or, one may- 
enter the Park from the west, coming by the 
Oregon Short Line. A day may be devoted to 
the sights of Salt Lake City — its famous temple 
and wonderful but rapidly vanishing lake — and 
the journey resumed at night. From Salt Lake 
City the trip to the Park may be comfortably 
made over night and the tour begun from the 
new Yellowstone Hotel the next morning. 
Either entrance will offer some advantage in the 
way of things to be seen and the plan of coming 
by one and leaving by the other is a good one. 
Where this is done the Gardiner entrance 
should be chosen for the beginning of the jour- 
ney through the Park. A glance at the maps of 
the route generally followed will make clear the 
reason for this. It will be seen that if the 
western entrance be chosen, in leaving by 
Gardiner one will miss some ten miles of the 
road below Norris Basin; and though this must 
be traversed twice if one enters by Gardiner and 
leaves by the Yellowstone gate, it entails no 

3 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

hardship. If one is to return by the same gate- 
way, I would recommend the Gardiner entrance, 
since otherwise the interesting bit of road 
between Mammoth Hot Springs and the station 
is likely to be missed — six or seven miles of the 
most perfect road in the Park, with much pic- 
turesque scenery along it. However, the two 
routes are so nearly identical that the matter of 
personal convenience may well be allowed to 
influence one's decision as to which to adopt. 
The regulation trip by the way of Gardiner 
comprises about one hundred and fifty-eight 
miles and the average of the roadway is sur- 
prisingly good. The whole route has been 
skillfully chosen by government engineers, and 
considering the difficult and mountainous nature 
of the country is exceptionally free from steep 
grades. In course of the last few years the road 
has been greatly improved; it has many fine 
stretches of macadam and while portions of it 
are as yet in rather poor condition, these are 
always passable on account of the nature of the 
soil, which does not cut up into deep mud in the 
wet weather not uncommon in the Yellowstone; 
but on the other hand, it may be distressingly 
dusty during the longer dry spells. The gov- 
ernment representatives have done much to 
overcome this by installing a sprinkler-cart 

4 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

service, which at present covers about two- 
thirds of the route and is being constantly ex- 
tended. The numerous streams furnish a ready 
supply of water, which is elevated by hydraulic 
rams into the tanks at the roadside. There is 
yet much to be done to put a large part of the 
road into first-class condition, especially the 
twenty-mile stretch from Thumb Station to 
Lake Hotel, and about fifteen miles from the 
Canyon to Norris Basin. The former, rough, 
hilly and often terribly dusty, may be avoided by 
taking the lake steamer, which is to be recom- 
mended though the extra fare is high for the 
distance; the latter road is quite new and work 
upon it is still in progress, so its early better- 
ment may be looked for. It chances, fortunate- 
ly, that these two pieces of road are the least 
interesting of the entire route; one misses little 
and gains much in scenic beauty by taking the 
lake boat, and as for the trip from the Canyon to 
Norris, he must endure as best he may the stif- 
ling dust and the jolting and pitching of the 
coach into the chuck-holes which abound. The 
finest bit of road in the Park is the six or seven 
miles from Gardiner to Mammoth Hot Springs, 
quite as excellent as one will find anywhere, and 
it is to be hoped that at some not very distant day 
the whole route may equal this splendid little 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

stretch. Then the motor car might come — but 
the motor car has no business in Yellowstone 
Park. Taking it altogether, while the road 
yet admits of much improvement, the journey- 
may be accomplished with little fatigue by any- 
one who is a fair traveler, and those who rather 
enjoy the strenuous life may have just as much of 
"roughing it" as they elect. 

This suggests the consideration of the vari- 
ous ways in which the round of the Park itself 
may be made, and one has the choice of three 
well-established methods. He may make the 
round in a minimum of six days by the coaches 
of either of the two transportation companies, 
stopping at the splendid hotels for the nights; if 
fond of outdoor life, he may avail himself of the 
services of any one of the several camping com- 
panies, of which the Wylie Permanent Camps 
are best known; or he may go quite independent 
of all these, for camping outfits may be rented 
at Livingston, Gardiner or Yellowstone in 
great variety, with wide range in style and price. 
Guides and cooks may easily be secured, and the 
tour made in strict privacy and prolonged to 
suit the convenience of the party — for, of course, 
such an arrangement is practicable only in case 
of a party of several people. The latter plan 
affords an ideal summer vacation and if we 

6 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

may judge from the enthusiasm of those who 
have adopted it, it is without doubt the most 
delightful way of doing the Yellowstone. But 
it would hardly be worth while to go to the 
trouble which it entails for a period of less than 
two or three weeks and for that reason this 
method will never be pursued by the great 
majority of Park visitors. 

Perhaps about an equal number go by the 
hotel and the regular camping routes ; the former 
is a little more expensive, and appeals to the 
traveler who dislikes the slight inconveniences 
of a canvas tent bedroom. Generally speaking, 
the hotels may also be preferred by the more 
elderly and less vigorous tourists, but the mo- 
tives will be so diverse that generalization is 
scarcely possible. The permanent camps are 
charmingly located, often in pine forests by lake 
or river; they are clean, the sanitation is good, 
and many of the tents afford the privacy and 
convenience of the ordinary hotel bedroom; they 
are heated by small wood stoves in which the 
attendants build fires before the tourists rise. 
There is more freedom and hilarity than in the 
hotels and the camping parties perhaps enjoy 
themselves more thoroughly than the hotel 
guests, but this would be natural, for they have 
a larger proportion of young people. 

7 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

The comfort and conveniences of the hotels 
have been so carefully looked after that even the 
experienced traveler will be surprised at the ex- 
cellence of the service. These remote inns will 
compare very favorably with the best resort 
hotels of the East, and despite the disadvan- 
tages they suffer by bringing their supplies so 
far by wagon, the bill-of-fare is excellent in 
quality and variety. Almost every hotel con- 
venience is supplied and the more modern ot 
the hotels have numerous rooms with bath in 
connection. Everything is quite informal and 
comfortable. One may take his ease at his inn, 
as desired by the Shakespearian worthy. The 
notion that an extensive wardrobe must be 
carried is a delusion; no one "dresses for 
dinner." I did not see a single "dress suit" dur- 
ing my round and I doubt if there were any in 
the Park. People were just plain, everyday 
American citizens, our own party comprising 
a schoolteacher and her friend, a country 
banker, a circuit judge and his niece, an eastern 
manufacturer and his wife — but it is not neces- 
sary to extend the list; the little given is repre- 
sentative enough. Such people are not to be 
hampered by any undue formality and it is 
hardly necessary to state that the readily 
formed acquaintances are not the least pleasant 

8 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

feature of the tour. The regulation Concord 
coach of the transportation companies carries 
eleven passengers besides the driver, but there 
are many other conveyances carrying four or 
more. Parties as far as possible are made up in 
accordance vv^ith the wishes of the members, but 
we found it quite satisfactory to take our 
chances in the allotment of our party, and the 
pleasant acquaintances formed during the five 
days' jaunt fully justified our course. And I do 
not doubt that had our lot fallen with any other 
coach the result would have been quite the 
same. One doesn't chance it very much in the 
company of the average Yellowstone tourist. We 
thought ourselves fortunate that our party in- 
cluded a pleasant old gentleman — somewhat 
talkative and self-opinionated, it is true, but an 
old-time mining and railroad promoter in the 
mountains, possessed of a wide fund of knowl- 
edge of the West, its fauna, flora and history. 
But for him we should often have missed the 
flowers, shrubbery, berries, strange trees and 
animals that abound in the Park. At every 
pause he brought to our attention something of 
the kind he had discovered which a less prac- 
ticed eye must have overlooked. Besides, he 
had a fund of stories and a ready wit which did 
much to entertain the party. 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

But I am digressing from my topic — the 
Park hotels — and one of them is so remarkable 
as to deserve extended mention, and an extended 
stay if one's time permits. Its like is hardly to 
be found elsewhere — the El Tovar at the 
Grand Canyon may resemble, but can hardly 
compare with it. For the Old Faithful Inn is 
quite as unique as the wonderland in which it 
stands. It is distinctly a product of the wilder- 
ness which surrounds it. Its design and con- 
struction is peculiarly appropriate to its location 
in the heart of the mountains and forests of the 
Park, from which the materials were drawn. 
Massive, unhewn forest trees, rough boulders 
and undressed slabs are happily co-ordinated in 
the great structure, and everywhere gnarled, 
twisted branches — the strangest ever seen — 
have been fitted into some appropriate place, 
forming supports for the over-hanging gables, 
the balconies and numerous dormer windows. 
The entrance hall is seventy-five feet square and 
rises ninety-two feet through the center to the 
rough timbers of the roof. In the midst is the 
immense stone chimney, fourteen feet square, 
with four great fireplaces, each of which can 
take a good-sized log in its capacious maw, and 
against its front is fastened a monstrous 
wrought iron skeleton clock, whose massive 

10 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

weights have a drop of perhaps thirty feet. The 
huge main entrance and dining-room doors are 
of solid oaken planks studded with heavy bolts 
and swung on great hand-wrought iron hinges. 
On the second and third floors rustic balconies 
surround the entrance hall, affording a pleasant 
promenade for the guests, and the bare slabs 
of the roof are visible at the top. There is a 
fine veranda in front with many cozy chairs, 
settees and rustic swings, from which one may 
watch the steaming basin and get a perfect view 
of Old Faithful in action. 

Yet with all this rusticity, comfort, conven- 
ience and even elegance are everywhere. The 
polished hardwood floors are covered with 
oriental rugs and the furniture is of mission 
pattern in dark weathered oak. The windows 
are of heavy plate glass in leaded panes and the 
furnishings of the bed- and bathrooms are of the 
best. Yet the rustic idea is carefully main- 
tained; even in the private rooms the walls are 
of rough planks or ax-dressed slabs and every- 
thing is redolent with the fragrance of the 
mountain pine. Verily, this inn is a pleasant 
place, set down as it is in a weird, enchanted 
land. One may leave its doors to view the sur- 
roundings, in charge of the Swiss guide, Joe, 
who for a dozen or more years has piloted the 

11 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

gaping crowds of pilgrims about this seething, 
spouting geyserland. And the quaint humor of 
his dry jokes is none the less amusing to you 
because he is cracking them for the thousandth 
time. 

Here is the very center of the active phe- 
nomena of the Park. Nowhere else are the 
geysers so plentiful, so varied or so beautiful. 
The queen of them all in beauty, symmetry and 
reliability is Old Faithful, which very appropri- 
ately gives its name to the inn. Every hour, 
day and night, summer and winter, this great 
white column of water and shining vapor spouts 
high into the heavens. There are others larger 
and which rise higher, but their intervals are 
very irregular and often of rare occurrence, and 
were it not for the rightly designated Old Faith- 
ful, many tourists would go through the Park 
without seeing a really representative geyser in 
action. 

The region around Old Faithful, known as 
Upper Geyser Basin, has many attractions aside 
from the geysers themselves. One will linger 
long to admire the crystal river that glides 
through the valley like molten diamond over its 
bed of mossy stones, and to watch the schools 
of mountain trout that dart hither and thither 
through the bright water quite regardless of 

12 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

your presence. Then there are Emerald Pool 
and Morning-Glory Spring, two of the most 
remarkable natural phenomena of the Park. 
The first is a lakelet of the most delicate emerald 
green, its waters themselves as clear as crystal 
but taking their tint from the bottom of the 
pool, giving a wonderful efifect of purity and 
transparency. The water is just below the boil- 
ing temperature, and apparently of great depth. 
The Morning-Glory Spring, whose marked re- 
semblance in shape to that flower gives it the 
name, is easily the most beautiful of the numer- 
ous hot springs of the Park. Its sides, following 
the contour of a giant morning-glory, slope 
away to a great depth, and reflect the hues of a 
thousand gems into the clear water that fills the 
spring. Turquois, emerald, jasper, amethyst, 
amber and lapis lazuli seem to lend their multi- 
farious colors to the walls of the spring, combin- 
ing to produce an effect indescribably beautiful. 
And yet, much as one may admire and enjoy all 
this weird beauty, he is never wholly free from 
a sense of uneasiness as he walks over the fire- 
fretted ground and feels beneath his tread a 
certain uncanny hollowness, and the tale the 
guides often tell about the breaking out of a 
new geyser comes unpleasantly to mind. For 
at Norris Basin a short time ago a terrific erup- 

13 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

tion took place, resulting in the formation of a 
new geyser. A loud report was heard and 
heavy stones were hurled hundreds of feet — but 
shortly after a party had left the spot. A little 
disquieting, but, after all, no one of the hundreds 
of thousands who have gone through Yellow- 
stone Park has ever been injured by such a 
catastrophe. Clearly, there is enough about 
Old Faithful, aside from the pleasant inn itself, 
to tempt anyone whose time permits to linger 
much longer than the few hours allowed by the 
regular tour; but those who must hasten on will 
carry away with them an ineffaceable recollec- 
tion of the unique hotel and its strange sur- 
roundings. 

Decidedly more conventional, but quite 
equal in appointment and comfort to Old Faith- 
ful Inn, is the Lake Hotel, some forty miles 
farther on the road. It was built but a few 
years ago, and is styled the Colonial on account 
of its massive colonnades fronting on the lake. 
Standing as it does in the edge of a stately pine 
forest and commanding a most picturesque view 
of the lake and mountains, its situation is a 
superb one. In the woods near at hand our 
naturalist friend found wild strawberries and 
called our attention to the tiny shrubs loaded 
with huckleberries. Here, too, a great colony 

14 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

of bears is often seen and at evening they con- 
gregate in a nearby open space in the woods to 
await the hotel garbage wagon. They are very 
mild, harmless mendicants, though at times they 
may show flashes of ill nature towards each 
other. They are always a great attraction for 
the hotel guests, some of whom are quite willing 
to miss a meal to watch the ungainly antics of 
the brutes. The Lake Hotel is in the center of 
the fishing district and the devotee of the sport 
will find a veritable paradise at hand. Even the 
novice is sure of a catch and the skilled fisher- 
man almost deprecates the eagerness of the 
Yellowstone Lake trout to take the bait. The 
most favored fishing grounds are near the 
outlet of the lake, though one is sure of success 
almost any\\^here. The principal catch is lake 
trout, some of which attain considerable size. 
The tourist with several days at his disposal in 
the Park and who prefers the convenience of 
the hotel to camping, will no doubt give the 
greater portion of his time to the Colonial. 

The Mammoth Hot Springs and Fountain 
Hotels are older and hardly comparable to the 
two I have described, though the service is much 
the same. The Canyon Hotel is the poorest of 
the five, and some day there will doubtless be a 

15 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

new one built more in keeping with its magnifi- 
cent surroundings. 



When I penned the foregoing lines it hardly- 
occurred to me that my prophecy in regard to a 
new hotel at the canyon would be fulfilled before 
the publication of this book. But such has 
proven the case. Early in 1910 the construc- 
tion of a new hotel was begun, which is quite 
as distinctive and impressive in its way as the 
Old Faithful Inn or the Lake Colonial Hotel. 
The most unique feature is the "lounge," one 
hundred and seventy-five feet by eighty-four 
feet in size, with open timber roof. It projects 
from the main building towards the canyon and 
a splendid view of the great gorge may be had 
from the windows. It is a matter of no small 
satisfaction to know that the canyon region at 
last has a hotel in every way in keeping with the 
magnificent surroundings, and the new inn will 
no doubt be one of the most popular stopping 
places in the Park. 



16 



II 

NATURAL WONDERS OF THE PARK-THE 
GEYSERS AND HOT SPRINGS 

I am in no sense attempting a guide book, 
and shall make no effort to follow the regulation 
tour in sequence. It shall be my aim to note but 
a few of the most remarkable phenomena of the 
Park and to endeavor to record some of the 
impressions its weird beauty and magnificence 
made upon my own mind. I cannot but feel 
that anyone who does something, though it be 
but little, towards disseminating a wider know- 
ledge of this untrammeled playground of the 
nation, is doing a commendable act. 

Doubtless the most distinctive feature of 
Yellowstone Park is its geysers — those strange, 
boiling, spouting springs, hot, highly colored 
pools, mud caldrons, paint pots, or whatever 
form they may take. In this regard the region 
is almost unique, for while geysers are found in 
Iceland, they do not compare with those of the 
Yellowstone region, and are, moreover, quite 

17 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

inaccessible to the average tourist. Not only 
is the geyser interesting as a strange natural 
phenomenon, but it is often so gloriously beauti- 
ful as to make a long journey to witness it well 
worth the while. And when one finds such a 
remarkable group in immediate connection with 
many other strange and delightful natural 
phenomena as in Yellowstone Park, the combi- 
nation is indeed a rare one. 

Various theories have been advanced to 
account for geyser action, but all have finally 
been abandoned in favor of that of Bunsen. He 
considers that the Yellowstone region is of 
volcanic origin and of comparatively recent date, 
though it may be millions of years old, for that 
matter. There are masses of heated rock near 
the surface and in these are numerous fissures 
through which the waters of Yellowstone Lake 
find their way. When the steam thus generated 
beneath the water rises to a sufficient pressure 
it ejects the column above it, following in dense 
clouds. The intervals vary according to the 
time required to fill the tube and generate the 
steam, and should depend much on the size and 
shape of the subterranean cavity. Where the 
circulation of the water is unhindered, a simple 
hot spring or pool will result, and these are more 
numerous than the spouting geysers. From the 

18 





ULD FAITHFUL GEYSER, VhLl.UWSTONE I'ARK 
Courtesy Northern Pacific Railway 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

very nature of geyser action, it is easy to see 
that under favorable conditions it may cease at 
any time or may break out in nev^ places, as pre- 
viously related. In 1888 the Excelsior Geyser 
— once the greatest and most spectacular in the 
Park — ceased to act. 

Old Faithful may be taken as typical of the 
Yellowstone geysers — which I have no inten- 
tion of cataloguing and describing in detail. It 
is within a few hundred yards of the hotel and 
may be viewed to advantage from an easy chair 
on the veranda. Every sixty-five minutes, with 
but trifling variation, this great white column 
rises from one to two hundred feet in the air, 
with a duration of four or five minutes. The 
appearance is greatly varied by weather condi- 
tions and differs much according to the hour of 
the day, thus presenting new beauties at almost 
every eruption. Sunrise, sunset, moonlight, 
wind and storm, all gild with various hues or 
sway the great steaming column into a thousand 
fantastic forms. When the geyser is quiescent 
one may approach the crater, an oblong opening 
about two by six feet, with a quiet pool of crys- 
tal clear water. Some say that the deposits 
around the crater indicate an age of tens if not 
hundreds of thousands of years. And bearing 

this fact in mind, one will experience a strange 

19 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

sensation as he gazes on this weird intermittent 
fountain, justly considered one of the gems of 
the wonderland. When Columbus discovered 
America this great white column at regular 
intervals was playing and glittering in the 
primal solitude; when Lief Erickson landed it 
was unspeakably old, but glorious as ever; when 
Christ was on earth its strange beauty fell on 
the eye of the infrequent savage who gazed on 
it with a superstitious awe; long before the 
reputed date of the creation it played and corus- 
cated in the sunlight; before man himself trod 
the earth Old Faithful, robed in showers of dia- 
monds and the glories of the rainbow, rose and 
fell with none to see and admire. And thinking 
of its immeasurable age, one is led to hope that 
for countless centuries to come this beautiful 
natural phenomenon may continue to play to 
the delight and admiration of millions yet 
unborn. 



20 



Ill 

NATURAL WONDERS OF THE PARK- 
THE LAKES AND RIVERS 

Next to geyser action in its myriad forms, 
the rivers and lakes of the Yellowstone will 
delight the visitor. There are none more 
beautiful in the whole world; the pure, limpid 
waters, the swift green and crystal rapids, the 
glorious foam-clad, rainbow-hued falls and the 
magnificent setting of natural scenery are alto- 
gether unmatched. The panorama, as one gazes 
up the great painted chasm of the canyon with 
the green foam-flecked Yellowstone writhing 
through it, ending in two of the most glorious 
cataracts on earth, has altogether nothing to 
compare with it; the canyon of the Colorado is 
as brilliant and vaster, but its dark, sand-laden 
river is no match for the emerald flood of the 
Yellowstone. The whole course of the river 
from Livingston to its source in the lake is one 
of constant beauty, which is probably at its 
height about the last of June, when the floods 

21 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

of the melting snows swell the stream. For 
twenty miles after leaving the lake the water 
lies in broad lazy reaches, as though it were 
resting for the awful turmoil before it, and its 
banks are beautifully diversified with open 
glades and majestic trees. One might float 
unhindered from the lake to the canyon with 
little to prepare him for the tremendous leap 
that the river makes to the bottom of the great 
many-colored gorge that awaits it. A sheer fall 
of three hundred and sixty feet is quickly fol- 
lowed by a second more than half as high, after 
which the vexed stream bounds madly onward 
between the variegated walls on either hand, 
and from thence until it joins the Missouri it has 
little of rest or quiet. 

The Firehole River, which the road follows 
for many miles, is picturesque, though it lacks 
the stupendous scenery of the Yellowstone. It 
is swift, crystal clear, and in places of consid- 
erable volume. It flows westward from the 
continental divide and its waters finally merge 
into those of the Columbia. Along its shores 
are many delightful camping sites, and the river 
runs directly through the group of geysers at 
Upper Basin. In fact, at this point the tempera*- 
ture is noticeably raised by the volume of water 
poured into it from the geysers and hot springs 

22 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

along its course. Immediately on its bank near 
the picturesque bridge where the road crosses is 
one of the most beautiful of the geysers in the 
Upper Basin group — the Riverside, which dis- 
charges its waters at an angle of about forty-five 
degrees, the only one that varies much from the 
vertical. 

There are many minor streams, all of which 
exhibit much the same characteristics. The 
road follows the Gibbon River some miles, 
crossing it several times. It rather lacks the 
beauty of its sister streams, though many of its 
falls and cascades form pretty bits of scenery. 

But the glory of the Park is Yellowstone 
Lake, a splendid sheet of pure water covering 
about one hundred and fifty square miles. It 
lies 7,741 feet above the level of the sea, girt 
by majestic mountains and usually reflecting a 
serene, cloudless sky. The waters are light- 
green in color tone and are permeated by 
myriads of tiny crystal bubbles that rise from 
the multitude of hot springs which flow into the 
bottom of the lake. We were so fortunate as 
to secure seats in the bow of the launch that 
takes one from Thumb Station to Lake Hotel, 
and from this point of vantage an entrancing 
view presented itself. Coming out into the 
main body of the lake, we sailed toward the 

23 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

great Absaroka Range, which flings its fanciful 
peaks high into the northeastern heavens, on 
that day intensely blue with an occasional snowy 
cloud drifting lazily along. It takes a stretch 
of imagination, perhaps, to see the Sleeping 
Giant or Cathedral Spires among the stern 
shapes that lie silhouetted against the horizon, 
but with a little aid from the mariner at the 
wheel you descry them and the resemblance 
grows as you glide toward them. Still farther 
to the right lies the lofty Sheridan Range, with 
patches of snow still flecking the forest-clad 
slopes. Whichever way one turns he is con- 
fronted by a panorama of dancing sunlit water 
stretching away to pine-clad shores and distant 
mountain peaks. 

Soon there looms up against a background 
of somber pines, the long yellow facade of the 
Lake Hotel with its massive overhanging gables 
upheld by great Corinthian pillars. We find it 
a very pleasant inn, its spacious lobby rich in 
mahogany and the polished floors strewn with 
oriental rugs. It fronts directly on the lake and 
a long row of comfortable chairs invites us to 
enjoy the splendid prospect at our ease. And 
indeed, so soon as his name is on the register, 
one hastens to the ample terrace in front of the 
hotel, where he may sit and silently admire the 

24 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

glorious sheet of water that stretches away 
toward the mountain ranges beyond — their 
summits glowing in the declining sun. 

I doubt if there is a finer bit of water on 
this mundane sphere. We have seen the Scotch, 
Swiss, Italian and Adirondack lakes, but all of 
them lack something of the indefinable charm 
and weird beauty of Yellowstone Lake on such 
an evening as this. Perhaps its very loneliness 
and remoteness lend not a little to the sentiment 
that o'ermasters one. What a fit setting this 
virgin wilderness, far from the hum of cities and 
sacred from the huntsman's gun, forms for it! 
The pelican, winging his way directly over the 
rowboats, unscared, and a flock of wild ducks 
floating yonder within a stone's throw from 
where you sit, give you a sense of strangeness. 
Elsewhere one may not find these shy wild things 
so careless of man's presence — and what tells 
them they are safe? 

But the evening advances; the lengthening 
shadows sweep over the bright waters which 
glow mysteriously beneath the opalescent skies. 
Momentarily the colors change; amber — ame- 
thyst — sapphire — seem to prevail in turn; then 
the glow fades from the rippling surface, which 
becomes a deep steel-blue mirror for the moun- 
tains and stars. But we are indeed favored 

25 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

tonight — a copper-colored moon is peeping over 
the eastern peaks; it gains in radiance as it 
ascends the heavens and flings a long streak of 
fire across the dancing w^avelets. The whole 
scene is transformed as by enchantment; the 
mountains become weird pyramids and towers, 
vast, ill-defined and unreal; the somber pines 
hide unimaginable mysteries; every nook and 
cranny of the sinuous shore line is peopled with 
ghostly habitants; one becomes oblivious of the 
inn and his fellow-beings and imagines himself 
the first human being who has ever beheld the 
entrancing scene. He beholds Yellowstone 
Lake, virginal, undiscovered, alone — in the heart 
of an unknown wonderland. 

But I awaken to the fact that I am quite 
alone in my contemplation of the glories of the 
sunset and moonrise on the lake; except for a 
few stragglers the guests have disappeared. A 
dozen or more bears in the grove to the rear of 
the hotel have proven a greater drawing card 
than the scene which inspires my ecstacies — and 
I may as well plead guilty myself to giving a 
good part of the evening to watching the antics 
of these uncouth denizens of the Park. 

There are other fine lakes in the vicinity, 
though much smaller and not on the regular 
route of travel. Shoshone, Lewis and Heart 

26 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

Lakes are of considerable size — like perfect 
gems set in the encircling hills. From Teton 
Point the tourist gets a fine view of Shoshone 
Lake. It is about seven miles long and from 
one to three in width. Its shores are most 
picturesque and a rather rough road leads 
around it from Upper Basin, passing through a 
group of geysers at the western end of the lake. 

The drive from Lake Hotel to the canyon 
takes one through as peaceful and quiet a bit of 
landscape as may be found in the Park. The 
weird mud volcano, some fifty feet in diameter, 
a great seething caldron of boiling mud, uncanny 
and malodorous, is the only notable evidence of 
geyser action in the twenty miles; there are no 
startling phenomena aside from this along the 
way. Just a splendid road with easy grades 
leading through a wide grassy valley along a 
tranquil shining river resting in broad quiet 
reaches and giving no hint of the awful fury just 
beyond. From our seat beside the driver — it 
was our turn to occupy this coveted position — 
we had a splendid view of river and valley and 
the grass-covered hillocks brought sharply to 
mind bits of country we had seen in the Scotch 
Highlands. 

But one's interest in this quiet valley is 
quite overshadov/ed by his eager anticipation of 

27 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

the wonders soon to come. We have read so 
much, heard so much, and have seen such mar- 
velous photographs and pictures of the Canyon 
and Falls of the Yellov^stone that expectation 
is roused to the highest pitch. We v^^onder if 
we shall be disappointed; whether the reality- 
will be less than the word-painting of Kipling 
and the canvas of Thomas Moran. Is the 
canyon such a marvel of color as they tell us, 
and are the river and its falls so overwhelming 
in grandeur and beauty as descriptions have 
made them? It is with eager anticipation that 
we await the testimony of our own eyes con- 
cerning the marvels of Yellowstone Canyon. 



28 



IV 

NATURAL WONDERS OF THE PARK-THE 

CANYON, MT. WASHBURN AND 

TOWER FALLS 

The old Canyon Hotel, standing on an 
eminence overlooking the valley, was rather the 
shabbiest and least satisfactory of the quintet. 
Perhaps the builders of the hotel considered 
that the exhilarating glories of the scenery were 
sufficient to atone for any lack of bodily com- 
fort. The old building, however, has been 
replaced since our visit in 1909 by the palatial 
structure already alluded to, which is said to 
even surpass the Lake Hotel in size and appoint- 
ment. But I would not intimate that the old 
Canyon Hotel was uncomfortable; perhaps it 
suffered rather in the minds of those who had 
just sojourned at the Lake Hotel and Old Faith- 
ful Inn. We arrived in time for luncheon and 
though we craned our necks for a sight of the 
canyon, we had no more than fugitive glimpses 
of the river through the trees. 

29 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

We realized later that we were fortunate in 
not seeing the canyon piecemeal; the view from 
Inspiration Point is far more impressive and 
overwhelming in its grandeur coming as it does 
when one is quite unprepared for it. A three- 
mile walk or drive from the hotel through 
thickly standing pine trees takes one to this 
famous viewpoint. A substantial platform sur- 
rounded by a rustic balustrade extends over the 
edge of the canyon and affords the vision a full 
sweep up and down the vast chasm. 

A long silence ensues as we contemplate 
the panorama before us. Words are indeed 
idle; photographs are misleading; the master- 
piece of the artist is inadequate. These may 
give some idea of the contour of the canyon and 
some hint of its coloring, but the awful distances, 
the overpowering vastness, dawn upon one only 
when his own eyes look upon the scene. It is 
this that quite overwhelms the beholder, who as 
a rule has little to say the first few minutes when 
the canyon in its full splendor bursts on his 
vision. There it lies before him, resplendent in 
every color of the spectrum, a vast rent in the 
mountains one-third of a mile deep, and at its 
bottom, too far away to be heard, dashes the 
vexed river a hundred feet wide, they tell us, but 
seemingly a mere writhing thread of emerald. 

30 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

The falls in the distance seem dazzling columns 
of snowy whiteness, edged with rainbows and 
half hidden at times in white mist. The prevail- 
ing hue of the canyon walls is pale yellow, but 
there are many dashes of warmer coloring, from 
soft browns and pinks to blood red. The sides 
are fretted into a thousand fanciful architectural 
shapes — spires and turrets and battlemented 
walls and in places the eroded rocks have an 
odd semblance to a ruined church or castle. 
The canyon is quite devoid of vegetation, 
though here and there stately pine trees have 
fastened themselves in inaccessible places on its 
walls. 

Anxious to see every phase of its beauty 
possible in our limited time, we drive to Artist's 
Point on the opposite side of the river. This is 
the spot from which Moran painted his great 
picture now hanging in the National Capitol. 
One has here a much nearer view of the falls, 
both Upper and Lower, and may gain some 
idea of the tremendous plunge of the latter, 
though if one is hardy enough for the climb, the 
foot of the falls is the place to appreciate most 
their real power and grandeur, if not their 
beauty. 

But it is folly for me to essay a description 
for which far abler pens have been inadequate. 

31 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

Better leave the reader with the masterly 
pictures of Mr. Moran, which tell the story as 
nearly as it may be told by aught save a personal 
visit to the canyon. If these pictures or any- 
thing I have said should prove sufficient to 
interest others in this truly representative 
American wonderland, it will be enough. 

The time will come, no doubt, when the 
standard route of travel through the Park will 
be changed, and instead of returning to Norris 
Basin from the canyon and doubling back to 
Mammoth Hot Springs, the tourist will proceed 
over the Mount Washburn road to Tower Falls 
— due north — and from thence to Fort Yellow- 
stone. It may require a day longer, but it will 
be a day well spent, for the view from Mount 
Washburn is another of the marvels of the 
Park. Unfortunately, a rainy day interfered 
with our plans; the mountain was enveloped in 
low-hung clouds, making a trip to the summit 
quite useless. I will therefore borrow the lan- 
guage of one who is a sort of tutelar spirit of 
our Western wilds and whose vast lore and keen 
appreciation is set forth in language of befitting 
beauty — Mr. John Muir, the gentle naturalist 
whose all-embracing love of nature even extends 
to the despised rattlesnake. In his book "Our 

32 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

National Parks" he thus describes the view from 
Mount Washburn: 

"Perhaps you have already said that you 
have seen enough for a lifetime. But before 
you go away you should spend at least one day 
and a night on a mountain top, for a last general, 
calming, settling view. Mount Washburn is a 
good one for the purpose, because it stands in 
the middle of the park, is unencumbered with 
other peaks, and is so easy of access that the 
climb to its summit is only a saunter. First 
your eye goes roving around the mountain rim 
amid the hundreds of peaks: some with plain 
flowing skirts, others abruptly precipitous and 
defended by sheer battlemented escarpments; 
flat-topped or round; heaving like sea- waves or 
spired and turreted like Gothic cathedrals; 
streaked with snow in the ravines, and darkened 
with files of adventurous trees climbing the 
ridges. The nearer peaks are perchance clad 
in sapphire blue, others far off in creamy white. 
In the broad glare of the noon they seem to 
shrink and crouch to less than half their real 
stature and grow dull and uncommunicative — 
mere dead, draggled heaps of waste ashes and 
stone, giving no hint of the multitude of animals 
enjoying life in their fastnesses, or of the bright 
bloom-bordered streams and lakes. But when 

33 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

storms blow they awake and arise, wearing 
robes of cloud and mist in majestic speaking 
attitudes like gods. In the color glory of morn- 
ing and evening they become still more impres- 
sive; steeped in the divine light of the alpenglow 
their earthiness disappears, and blending with 
the heavens, they seem neither high nor low. 

"Over all the central plateau, which from 
here seems level, and over the foothills and 
lower slopes of the mountains, the forest 
extends like a black uniform bed of weeds, 
interrupted only by lakes and meadows and 
small burned spots called parks — all of them, 
except the Yellowstone Lake, being mere dots 
and spangles in general views, made conspicuous 
by their color and brightness 

"A few columns and puffs of steam are seen 
rising from the treetops, some near, but most of 
them far off, indicating geysers and hot springs, 
gentle-looking and noiseless as downy clouds, 
softly hinting the reaction going on between the 
surface and the hot interior. From here you 
see them better than when you are standing 
beside them, frightened and confused, regarding 
them as lawless cataclysms. The shocks and 
outbursts of earthquakes, volcanoes, geysers, 
storms, the pounding of waves, the uprush of 

34 




GREAT FALLS. IKOM BELOW, YELLOWSTONE 
Courtesy Northern Pacific Railway 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

sap in plants, each and all tell the orderly love- 
beats of Nature's heart. 

"Turning to the eastward, you have the 
canyon and reaches of the river in full view; and 
yonder to the southward lies the great lake, the 
largest and most important of all the high foun- 
tains of the Missouri-Mississippi, and the last to 
be discovered 

"Yonder is Amethyst Mountain, and other 
mountains hardly less rich in old forests, which 
now seem to spring up again in their glory; and 
you see the storms that buried them — the ashes 
and torrents laden with boulders and mud, the 
centuries of sunshine, and the dark, lurid nights. 
You see again the vast floods of lava, red-hot and 
white-hot, pouring out from gigantic geysers, 
usurping the basins of lakes and streams, 
absorbing or driving away their hissing, scream- 
ing waters, flowing around hills and ridges, 
submerging every subordinate feature. Then 
you see the snow and glaciers taking possession 
of the land, making new landscapes. How 
admirable it is that, after passing through so 
many vicissitudes of frost and fire and flood, the 
physiognomy and even the complexion of the 
landscape should still be so divinely fine 

"The sun is setting; long, violet shadows are 
growing out over the woods from the mountains 

35 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

along the western rim of the Park, the Absaroka 
Range is baptized in the divine light of the 
alpenglow, and its rocks and trees are trans- 
figured. Next to the light of the dawn on high 
mountain tops, the alpenglow is the most im- 
pressive of all the terrestrial manifestations of 
God. 

"Now comes the gloaming. The alpenglow 
is fading into earthy murky gloom, but do not 
let your town habits draw you away to the 
hotel. Stay on this good fire-mountain and 
spend the night among the stars. Watch their 
glorious bloom until the dawn, and get one more 
baptism of light. Then, with fresh heart, go 
down to your work and whatever your fate, 
under whatever ignorance or knowledge you 
may afterward chance to sufiFer, you will remem- 
ber these fine, wild views, and look back with 
joy to your wanderings in the blessed old Yel- 
lowstone Wonderland." 

Tower Fall is at the lower end of the 
canyon and is one of the most charming of the 
cataracts of the Yellowstone. It plunges some 
seventy-five feet sheer downwards, while high 
above it rise the spirelike pinnacles which give 
the name to the fall. The words of the discov- 
erer, penned some thirty years ago, should 
forever be associated with the entrancing scene 

36 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

which he so vividly and gracefully describes: 
''Nothing can be more chastely beautiful 
than this lovely cascade, hidden away in the dim 
light of overshadowing rocks and woods, its 
very voice hushed to a low murmur, unheard at 
the distance of a few hundred yards. Thou- 
sands might pass by within half a mile and not 
dream of its existence; but once seen, it passes 
to the list of most pleasant memories." 

There is no spot in the Park more delight- 
fully located for the lover of nature who desires 
to camp under the open skies in the midst of the 
loveliest and most inspiring surroundings. 
Far off the beaten path of the tourist and the 
goal of only the infrequent visitor, it offers 
opportunity for complete severance from the 
busy world and for undisturbed rest and recrea- 
tion. The walls of the canyon here are of 
columnar basalt, a formation similar to the 
Giant's Causeway in Ireland, rising to a height 
of eight hundred feet or more in such regularity 
as to seem almost the work of man. 

The road from Tower Fall to Mammoth 
Hot Springs is mainly through a rather uninter- 
esting tract, being in good part a treeless 
meadow where thousands of elk pasture in 
winter time. This road will not compare with 
the main traveled roads of the Park, but we may 

37 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

hope that some day a fine hotel may be built 
near Tower Fall and the main route of travel 
take this direction. 

Among the more interesting phenomena 
are the Mammoth Hot Springs near Fort Yel- 
lowstone. The waters, issuing from the earth 
just below the boiling point and heavily charged 
with mineral deposits, have in long course of 
time built up strange, beautifully colored ter- 
races, many of them of great extent. In the 
main these are of snowy whiteness, giving the 
semblance of sculptured marble, but others are 
of variegated coloring, in which pink and orange 
seem to predominate. This is due to a small 
vegetable growth — not to mineral pigments, as 
might be supposed — and the color vanishes 
when the spring becomes extinct. Some of the 
springs take the form of pools several hundred 
feet in diameter, and the water is of remarkable 
transparency, despite the heavy solution of 
minerals it carries. Of this Dr. Hayden said: 

"The wonderful transparency of the water 
surpasses anything of the kind I have ever seen 
in any other portion of the world. The sky, 
with the smallest cloud that flits across it, is 
reflected in its clear depths, and the ultra-marine 
colors, more vivid than the sea, are greatly 
heightened by constant, gentle vibrations. One 

38 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

can look down into the clear depths and see, 
with perfect distinctness, the minutest orna- 
ment on the inner sides of the basin; and the 
exquisite beauty of the coloring and the variety 
of forms baffle any attempt to portray them 
either with pen or pencil." 

But a few miles from Mammoth Hot 
Springs, the road passes through the famous 
Golden Gate over a concrete causeway lately 
constructed by the Government. This clings to 
the almost perpendicular side of the cliff, a 
splendid cement road protected by substantial 
balustrades and supported upon massive rounded 
arches. The view from either entrance of the 
canyon is a beautiful one, and the yellow lichen 
covering the rocks has given the pass its name — 
Golden Gate. On one side of the road giant 
cliffs stretch their stern outlines up into the 
heavens and far below on the opposite side 
dashes the clear mountain stream. There is one 
uncanny feature — at times masses of rock be- 
come detached from the cliffs and hurl them- 
selves on the road. A huge piece had recently 
been broken from the cement balustrade in this 
manner. Just beyond the Golden Gate towards 
Mammoth Hot Springs are the irregular rocks 
styled the Hoodoos — though the reason for this 
name is hardly apparent. These huge blocks of 

39 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

limestone — many of them as large as a good- 
sized house — are thrown promiscuously about, 
lying in every conceivable position. The whole 
region is uncanny; what cataclysm tumbled 
these huge stones in wild confusion, apparently 
with as little effort as though they were a child's 
marbles? One theory is that at some distant 
time the river eroded vast caves beneath the 
mountain, which collapsed in these unwieldy 
blocks of stone. 

To me, the most inspiring view along the 
regular route of the tour is the far-reaching 
scene from Shoshone Point. Leaving the hos- 
pitable doors of Old Faithful Inn, we began a 
steady climb of perhaps ten miles, winding our 
tedious course through the continuous forest of 
pine trees that covers the mountain slopes. We 
are crossing the continental divide and note on 
the milestones the steadily increasing altitude. 
Twice we cross the line of the divide, which 
sweeps northward here in a great loop ; midway, 
on the very crest, our driver pauses and pointing 
with his whip laconically remarks, "The Tetons.'* 
We are altogether unprepared for the panorama 
that bursts on our vision and may well hold our 
breath in surprise and delighted astonishment. 
Right below us, like a great diamond, lies Sho- 
shone Lake, rippling and glittering in the sun- 

40 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

shine, its brilliancy enchanced by the dense green 
of the pines that encircle it, while far away, 
shrouded in the soft blue haze of distance, rise 
the blue and purple peaks of the Tetons, the 
giants of the Rocky Mountain Range. Between 
lies a wide stretch of pine-clad mountains, with 
here and there a glint of lake and river. The 
day is perfect, cloudless and serene, and it is 
distance alone that lends the soft atmospheric 
tone to the snow-capped summits some fifty 
miles away. One may catch other glimpses of 
these majestic peaks from different points along 
the road — always inspiring, always beautiful 
and grand, but nowhere else is there such a 
splendid foreground to complete the picture as 
at Shoshone Point. 

But one may well despair of enumerating 
even a fraction of the marvelous scenes and 
phenomena that abound in the Yellowstone. 
Such a catalogue would of itself fill a volume. 
The sketches I have drawn are only typical and 
are at best but dim reflections of the reality. 
Much will depend on the weather, but fortu- 
nately, the average weather in the Park is fine 
and the showers and dull skies usually transi- 
tory. And in this connection I might remark 
that cool, crisp days and rather sharp nights 
predominate, a condition for which the tourist 

41 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

should adequately provide, especially early in 
the season. Yellowstone Lake is seldom free 
from ice until the middle of June and in some 
seasons much later. The heavy snow^s are often 
long in disappearing. The days in August and 
September are often fairly w^arm, though never 
oppressive, and one w^ill find this a very enjoy- 
able time to visit the Park. There v^ill be fewer 
wild flowers and less water in the streams, but 
the crowds will be smaller and the mosquitoes 
and gnats, often very annoying earlier in the 
season, will have disappeared. 



42 



V 
THE FAUNA AND FLORA OF THE PARK 

The wild animals are by no means the least 
interesting feature of the Park — though many 
of them are hardly wild in the accepted sense. 
Long immunity from the rifle of the huntsman 
has left the denizen of this enchanted land 
almost free from fear of man, and they more 
often resemble our domestic animals in their 
habits and actions. There are bears, buffaloes, 
elk, deer, antelopes, mountain sheep, many fur 
bearers — including several colonies of beavers — 
and numerous smaller animals, among which 
several varieties of squirrel are oftenest seen. 
The tourist by the ordinary route will see only a 
few of these native inhabitants of the Park; the 
elk and deer keep to the mountains during the 
daytime and only stragglers are seen. In the 
woods near Mammoth Hot Springs we came 
upon a large deer which eyed us curiously with 
little signs of fear, though we came within a 
dozen yards of it. The buffaloes here, some 

43 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

dozen in number, are a daily sight; for the 
soldiers drive them into a large corral a mile 
from the hotel and the animals behave much as 
domestic cattle. The beaver is always shy, but 
we saw one or two of them at Beaver Lake near 
the Obsidian Cliff. The industrious little 
brutes have dammed the creek here until it 
forms a considerable lake remarkable for the 
indigo-blue color of its waters. There are 
several other colonies in the Park, though not 
on the regular route of travel. Wolves and 
mountain lions, once fairly common, have been 
nearly exterminated by the guards. Squirrels 
and chipmunks one will see by the hundreds, 
often perched on a log, chattering saucily at the 
coach as it passes. 

Birds are principally migratory, since the 
eggs of few species hatch at the altitude of the 
Park. Pelicans abound on the lake, having 
appropriated an island to their own use, and 
numbers of these huge birds flying low over the 
water often afford a picturesque sight. They 
are quite fearless and sometimes make little 
efifort to get out of the way of the boats. But, 
strangest of all, the timidity of the wild ducks 
vanishes in the Park — they seem to realize they 
are safe here and one will often see a flock feed- 
ing fearlessly within a stone's throw. Even the 

44 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

Canada duck, said to be the most timorous of all, 
shows the same sense of security in this favored 
spot. Eagles are to be seen but rarely, though 
one for years has nested on Eagle Cliff, a high 
rocky pinnacle on the road near Gardiner. 

But of all the living things of the Park, the 
bears are seen oftenest and create the greatest 
interest among the tourists. Bruin has quite 
lost his savage traits and is sometimes entirely 
too familiar with campers. He will loot a camp 
in daytime when the owners are away and often 
prowl around by night in an unpleasant manner. 
A friend told me of being roused by a noise in 
his tent one night and on striking a match found 
a large bear nosing round, but the intruder 
speedily departed when discovered. The bears 
are a never-failing source of attraction at the 
hotels, especially at Old Faithful and Lake and 
a dozen or more are often seen at the garbage 
dumping ground, where their antics amuse 
spectators of all ages. 

Reptiles are very rare, though rattlesnakes 
have been found in the lower altitudes, and 
harmless lizards are numerous. 

Of all things Yellowstone Park is the fish- 
erman's paradise. Here the disciple of Ike 
Walton is hampered with no license or restric- 
tion save that he must confine himself to hook 

45 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

and line. Yellowstone Lake and many of the 
streams literally swarm with trout which were 
"planted" by the United States Fish Commission 
a few years ago. Rainbow and Loch Leven 
trout — the latter from the famous Scotch lake 
and of unequalled excellence — are common in 
certain localities, and native mountain trout 
abound in the lakes and most of the streams. 
The most famous fishing ground is at the outlet 
of Yellowstone Lake, and even the unskilled 
amateur is certain of success here. The regular 
tourist, who has but half a day at this point, 
often employs it in fishing. Of late years a 
large proportion of the fish taken is found to be 
worthless on account of a parasite which has 
attacked them, especially in Yellowstone Lake. 
The number of fish here is so vast that the food 
is insufficient, making them especially suscep- 
tible to the ravages of the parasite. Even if one 
does not greatly care to fish, he will be delighted 
to watch the schools of trout as they dart about 
in the clear streams, giving the touch of anima- 
tion that always adds to the interest of natural 
scenery. 

The forests of the Yellowstone are not 
comparable to those of the Yosemite, and really 
fine individual trees are rare. In places the 
pines grow almost as thickly as they can stand, 

46 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

springing up over myriads of fallen trunks — no 
doubt victims of fire and storm. A large part of 
the mountains is devoid of trees of any kind, 
and many comparatively level tracts like 
Hayden Valley are also quite treeless. Perhaps 
tvvro-thirds of the Park is w^ell w^ooded. Various 
shrubs — the gooseberry, currant, chokeberry, 
bufifalo-berry — abound and w^ild fruits and 
flowers in great variety are to be found. The 
flow^ers are especially numerous in season 
and are surprisingly hardy considering the fact 
that there are few nights in the year without 
frost. The rarer and more beautiful varieties 
are found in the higher elevations and one of 
the delights of ascending the mountains is the 
beauty and fragrance of the flowers that deck 
their slopes. 



47 



VI 

THE HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OF THE PARK 

When one has finished the round of the 
Park, he will likely find himself curious to know 
the story of the discovery and setting aside of 
this wonderland as a pleasure-ground for any 
who may care to come. It is refreshing to find 
an instance where the National Government 
acted with great promptness, and wisely as well, 
and has been fairly consistent in carrying out its 
original plans. It was within two or three 
years after reliable surveys had been made and 
really authentic descriptions of the marvelous 
country given to the world that the act of 
Congress, setting aside the region as a National 
Park "for the benefit and enjoyment of the 
people," was passed. No time was lost in which 
to give jobbers and speculators a chance to get 
in their work; perhaps the region was then 
considered of little value. In any event, it was 
set aside so soon after its discovery as to insure 
that its virgin state would be preserved — that 

48 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

even the railroad would be excluded and no town 
could be founded within its limits. 

It would seem that the Indian tribes in this 
vicinity — the Blackfeet, Crows and others — 
knew little of the country within the present 
bounds of the Park before the advent of the 
white man. There is good evidence that 
scattering tribes of red men had been in the 
region from time to time, but the number must 
have been few and their visits infrequent. 
Doane, who surveyed the locality in 1870, 
ascribes the absence of the Indians to "super- 
stitious fears." He saw a few Sheep-eaters and 
Snake-Indians — corresponding quite closely in 
degradation to the Digger Indians — in the 
present limits of the Park, but said that the 
larger tribes never entered the basin. There is 
some dispute about this, but it is easy to con- 
ceive that such an array of mysterious phenom- 
ena could not fail to excite the superstition of 
savages, who would naturally attribute the 
strange manifestations to infernal powers. 

The earliest reference to the region is in 
the stories of John Colter, a member of the 
Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1806. As the 
expedition returned to St. Louis, this man at 
his own request was released to engage in 
trapping beavers in the vicinity of what is now 

49 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

the Park. He joined a party of trappers and 
being a resourceful man with some knowledge 
of Indian habits and language, was sent out 
with a companion to gain the good will of sev- 
eral of the tribes. His adventures were 
astounding, though apparently authentic, and 
again illustrate the wonderful endurance and 
vitality of the old-time Western trapper. In 
the course of his wanderings his companion was 
killed and he himself captured by the Blackfeet 
Indians, then intensely hostile to the whites. A 
council was at once held by the savages, three 
hundred or more in number, to decide how their 
unfortunate captive should be disposed of, and 
the plan of binding him to a tree to serve as a 
target for their arrows seemed about to prevail 
when the chief interfered. He ordered that 
Colter be stripped of his clothes and given a 
chance to run for his life. Doubtless the old 
savage thought merely to have a little diversion ; 
it is hardly possible he believed that under such 
conditions his prisoner could outrun and finally 
escape from several hundred fleet-footed war- 
riors. It chanced, however, that Colter was a 
famous runner and distanced all his pursuers 
save one, upon whom he suddenly turned, 
killing the savage with his own weapon, which 
the desperate scout wrested from him. Plunging 

50 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

into the river near at hand, Colter hid until 
nightfall under a pile of drift-wood and under 
cover of darkness swam do\\Ti the stream, 
eluding his pursuers. Then for seven days he 
\^*andered stark naked under the burning sun, 
his feet bruised by stones and torn by the 
prickly pear, when by strange chance he reached 
the trappers' fort from which he started out some 
months before. Such a story seems quite in- 
credible, but it is well authenticated. 

But while his companions and the people 
generally seemed willing enough to accept 
Colter's almost incredible stor}- of his escape, 
they laughed at his tales of a wonderful country- 
he had visited in his wanderings — a land of 
steaming pools, springs of boiling water that at 
intervals shot hundreds of feet in the air, of 
seething caldrons of pitch and strange lakes and 
rivers. All this ^^'as treated with derision and 
classed with the tales of Gulliver and Munchau- 
sen. "Colter's Heir' was the title the \\'ise ones 
gave to the region of the trapper's stories. But 
we know now that it was truthful enough and 
the first intimation the world received of the 
Yellowstone wonderland. 

Nearly half a centur}* elapsed after the 
thrilling experience of John Colter before 
authentic facts were published concerning the 

SI 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

region he tried to describe. Legends and 
rumors more or less fantastic were afloat con- 
cerning the strange region, but it was not until 
1869 that a well-equipped prospecting party- 
undertook to explore the head waters of the 
Yellowstone. This was a purely private enter- 
prise and was undertaken by a party of three 
explorers with the definite purpose of ascer- 
taining the true nature of the country about 
which so many strange stories had been told. 
These three men, "armed with repeating rifles, 
Colt's six-shooters and sheath-knives, with a 
double-barreled shot-gun for small game; and 
equipped with a good field-glass, pocket-compass 
and thermometer, and utensils and provisions 
for a six weeks' trip, set out from Diamond 
City on the Missouri River, forty miles from 
Helena, September 6, 1869. 

"The route lay up against the Missouri to 
the Three Forks; thence via Bozeman and Fort 
Ellis to the Yellowstone River; and thence up 
the Yellowstone to its junction with the East 
Fork inside the present limits of the Park. 
From this point they crossed to the east bank 
and followed up the river, passing through the 
many groups of hot springs to be found east of 
the canyon. On September 21st, they arrived 
at the Falls of the Yellowstone, where they 

52 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

remained an entire day. Some distance above 
the rapids they re-crossed to the west shore and 
then ascended the river past Sulphur Mountain 
and Mud Volcano to Yellov^stone Lake. They 
then went to the extreme west shore of the 
lake and spent some time examining the sur- 
passingly beautiful springs at that point. 
Thence they crossed the mountains to Shoshone 
Lake, which they took to be the head of Madison, 
and from that point struck out to the northwest 
over a toilsome country until they reached the 
Lower Geyser Basin near Nez Perce Creek. 
Here they saw the Fountain Geyser in action 
and the many other phenomena in that locality. 
They ascended the Firehole River to Excelsior 
Geyser and Prismatic Lake, and then turned 
down the river on their way home." 

Thirty-six days were consumed on the expe- 
dition and the party witnessed a large number 
of the marvels of the Park, which so astonished 
them that "on their return they were unwilling 
to risk their reputation for veracity" by a full 
recital of the wonders they had seen. However, 
their experience had a strong influence in the 
formation of a larger semi-official expedition 
that explored the country the following winter 
—1870. 

This expedition left Helena, Montana, in 

53 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

August and consisted of nine persons — many 
more who originally intended to accompany it 
being deterred on account of serious Indian 
disturbances that arose about the time set for 
departure. The expedition was under the 
direction of General Washburn, Surveyor-Gen- 
eral of Montana, and its personnel was of 
unusually high order. A small military escort 
under Lieutenant Doane joined the party at 
Fort Ellis and the expedition entered the present 
territory of the Park on August 26th, following 
the course of the Yellowstone River. Accord- 
ing to their own statement, the members of the 
expedition were profoundly sceptical of the 
wonders they were about to see, especially as to 
the boiling springs and geysers. Tower Fall 
first excited their astonishment, but was speedily 
forgotten in the wonder and amazement that 
the canyon and Lower Falls aroused. From 
Mount Washburn they viewed the great 
panorama before them and all doubt as to the 
remarkable characteristics of the region vanished 
at once. Before leaving, this party witnessed 
most of the phenomena now on the regular tour 
of the Park, among these Mammoth Hot 
Springs, Yellowstone Lake, and the Upper and 
Lower Basins. On emerging from the forest 
into the field of geyser activity now styled 

54 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

Upper Basin, they were delighted to behold the 
first exhibition of Old Faithful ever witnessed 
by white men. The overjoyed wanderers could 
scarce believe their eyes as they beheld the 
steaming column rising before them, glorious 
in the crisp air of a clear September day. The 
era of myth and fable was past and the truth 
about the great American wonderland was to be 
given to the world at last. 

A most remarkable incident of the expedi- 
tion was the experience of Mr. Evarts, who 
became separated from the party and nearly lost 
his life in the weird country he had helped to 
discover. For thirty-seven days he wandered — 
mainly in circles, it seems — and when nearly 
exhausted he was rescued by a party of 
trappers. Being wholly without weapons, his 
food consisted of thistle roots, which he boiled 
in the springs. His difficulties were much 
increased by his extreme near-sightedness, 
which greatly hindered him in securing food and 
water. His companions on missing him 
searched for him a week and then gave him up 
as lost. 

The official expedition the following year 
added but little to the knowledge of the wonders 
of the Park, but made some very important sur- 
veys and collected a vast amount of accurate 

55 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

data concerning the region. Many photographs 
were taken which greatly assisted in dissemin- 
ating knowledge of the newly discovered 
wonderland. 

The idea of setting the region aside as a 
National Park appears to have occurred to sev- 
eral minds at once. It was so manifestly the 
correct thing to do that this can hardly be con- 
sidered strange. It was indeed fortunate that 
the idea was so promptly acted upon before 
private parties had taken up the land or in any 
way interfered with the formations or phenom 
ena. The bill was introduced in Congress early 
in 1872 and met with little opposition, becoming 
a law when signed by the President March 1st 
following. 

The exact wording of the act itself — unusu- 
ally short and to the point — may serve as a 
fitting close to our rather hasty sketch: 

"THE ACT OF DEDICATION" 

"AN ACT to set apart a certain tract of 
land lying near the headwaters of the Yellow- 
stone River as a public park. 

"Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives of the United States 
of America in Congress assembled, That the 
tract of land in the Territories of Montana and 

56 



THE YELLOWSTONE 

Wyoming lying near the headwaters of the 
Yellowstone River and described as follows, 
to-wit: Commencing at the junction of Gardi- 
ner's River with the Yellowstone River and 
running east to the meridian, passing ten miles 
to the eastward of the most eastern point of 
Yellowstone Lake; thence south along the said 
meridian to the parallel of latitude, passing ten 
miles south of the most southern point of Yel- 
lowstone Lake; thence west along said parallel 
to the meridian, passing fifteen miles west of the 
most western point of Madison Lake; thence 
north along said meridian to the latitude of the 
junction of the Yellowstone and Gardiner's 
Rivers; thence east to the place of beginning, is 
hereby reserved and withdrawn from settle- 
ment, occupancy, or sale under the laws of the 
United States, and dedicated and set apart as a 
public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit 
and enjoyment of the people; and all persons 
who shall locate, or settle upon, or occupy the 
same or any part thereof, except as hereinafter 
provided, shall be considered trespassers and 
removed therefrom. 

"Sec. 2. That said public park shall be 
under the exclusive control of the Secretary of 
the Interior, whose duty it shall be, as soon as 
practicable, to make and publish such rules and 

57 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

regulations as he may deem necessary or proper 
for the care and management of the same. Such 
regulations shall provide for the preservation 
from injury or spoilation of all timber, mineral 
deposits, natural curiosities or wonders within 
said Park, and their retention in their natural 
condition. 

"The Secretary may, in his discretion, grant 
leases for building purposes, for terms not 
exceeding ten years, of small parcels of ground, 
at such places in said Park as shall require the 
erection of buildings for the accommodation of 
visitors; all of the proceeds of said leases, and 
all other revenue that may be derived from any 
source connected with said Park, to be expended 
under his direction in the management of the 
same and the construction of roads and bridle- 
paths, and shall provide against the wanton 
destruction of the fish and game found within 
said Park and against their capture or destruc- 
tion for the purpose of merchandise or profit. 
He shall also cause all persons trespassing upon 
the same after the passage of this act to be 
removed therefrom, and generally shall be 
authorized to take all such measures as shall be 
necessary or proper to fully carry out the objects 
and purposes of this act." 



58 




CASCADE FALLS, YOSEMITE PARK 
From the Original Painting by Thomas Moran, N. A. 



The Yosemite 
I 

THE VALLEY AND THE MOUNTAINS 

If, as is probable, strangeness and almost 
unearthly weirdness impressed you most in the 
Yellowstone, the all-predominating characteris- 
tic of the Yosemite, which is likely to prove as 
striking, is beauty. True, there is grandeur in 
its mountain peaks and walls and there is a 
suggestion of awful power in its torrents that 
sweep unhindered over stupendous cliffs, but 
none the less it is beauty that makes the pre- 
dominant impression on the beholder. Here is 
a world elysian in this peaceful valley with its 
marvelous Mirror Lake, its green and crystal 
river, its sparkling brooks, its forests of un- 
matched majesty and its riot of wild flowers, 
shut in by towering mountains which fling their 
fretted spires and sullen ramparts against a 
heaven as blue as that of Italy itself. If the 
Yellowstone, with its sulphur mountains, its 
boiling springs and steaming vales, may be com- 

59 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

pared to an inferno, surely we have the antithesis 
in this lovely vale whose fittest semblance is 
Paradise. Here indeed we may find a realiza- 
tion of Tennyson's 

"Fantastic beauty such as lurks 
In some wild poet when he works 

Without a conscience or an aim.'' 
In color, in contour, in beauty, in grandeur, 
in all that goes to make a natural landscape 
enchanting and impressive, Yosemite surely 
excels. 

It is easy of access now, since the advent of 
the railway up the ]\Ierced River Canyon to El 
Portal, not very far from the ofiicial entrance 
of the Park. One may take a Pullman car at 
San Francisco or Los Angeles at midnight and 
at daybreak find himself gliding along the banks 
of the river in the mountain pass that leads to 
the valley. El Portal station is reached quite 
early in the morning. Here a new hotel, 
located well up the mountainside, affords oppor- 
tunity for breakfast and it is also the starting 
point for the coaches that take you into the 
valley. \'ery diffierent indeed from the situa- 
tion four or five years ago, when a coach ride of 
seventy-five miles was necessary to reach the 
point where the train now stops. At that time 
perhaps quite as many came to Yosemite by the 

60 



THE YOSEMITE 

way of Raymond on the south, visiting the 
great trees enroute, as from Merced, but in 
either case the distance by coach was about the 
same, and while every mile of the road is replete 
with interest and beauty, not a few people were 
deterred by the one hundred and fifty miles of 
coaching over mountain roads. To this was 
added the round of the valley by coach and trail, 
forty miles or more, depending upon how thor- 
oughly the tourist might wish to explore the 
Park. 

And the Yosemite roads are not to be 
compared with those of the Yellowstone. In 
fact, they average little better than mountain 
trails, usually too narrow for vehicles to pass 
each other, very steep in places, distressingly 
stony and rough, and in dry weather covered 
several inches deep with an impalpable white 
dust that rolls in suffocating clouds from the 
wheels. If one is content to visit Yosemite 
Vr'Jley only, he can now do so and drive no more 
than twenty-five to fifty miles by coach, supple- 
mented, of course, by mule-back trail trips to his 
liking. And this is as far as many go — as far 
as I myself thought to go, in fact. But fortu- 
nately, wiser counsel prevailed and by extending 
our time two days longer we visited the Mari- 
posa Grove of big trees. This required a 

61 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

coaching trip of some eighty miles — every mile 
rough and dusty, but it is, withal, an experience 
the memory of which we would not willingly 
part with. And had our time been a day or two 
longer we might have employed it pleasantly 
and avoided much of the fatigue caused by our 
too hurried trip. 

The coach which is to take us into the Park 
is waiting in front of the hotel. It is a four- 
horse, ten-passenger affair quite similar to those 
used in the Yellowstone. Both are modifica- 
tions of and probably improvements upon the 
old-time stagecoach of the mountains, though 
of course the latter had greater provision for 
mail and baggage. The Yosemite coaches have 
no covering, but this is hardly necessary in a 
country where rain is light and infrequent 
during the tourist season. The bodies are 
swung on leather thorough-brace springs and, 
if the trip be not too long, are fairly comfortable 
to ride in. However, the condition of the Yose- 
mite roads is such that no vehicle of whatever 
description could be expected to roll smoothly 
over them. 

Almost a mile from the hotel we enter the 
official confines of the Park, but we proceed a 
half dozen miles farther ere we come in sight of 
the mountain-girdled vale whose beauty we are 

62 



¥iib li 







KJI t.U!. i,-dH,U,iMl.ylidiii '#IBi!^Jtt,'/ 



THE YOSEMITE 

about to explore. The scenery between El 
Portal and the valley is thoroughly picturesque. 
We follow a narrow canyon between moun- 
tainous hills, and towering cliffs often rise above 
the road, alongside which the Merced River 
courses, now in swift cascades, now lying in 
quiet pools beneath overhanging trees, and 
again fleeting past in angry rapids; here the 
water is clear as crystal, there emerald green, 
but always delightful in its variations of color 
and light. It is a steady, up-hill climb to the 
entrance of the valley. The road is uneven and 
deep with dust, and the heavy coach severely 
taxes the four spanking horses, which are 
allowed frequent breathing spells; we pause to 
give them water from the river and to drink, 
ourselves, from the same crystal flood. We 
have been long on the road; it seems we must be 
nearing our goal. But the driver dashes our 
hopes; we have come only four miles, one-third 
of the distance to our destination. The weather 
is unusually warm for the Yosemite, where the 
rule is bright crisp days and sharp, if not frosty 
nights, and the heat with the dust clouds is 
anything but conducive to comfort. Despite 
the beauty of the scenery along the river, we 
find ourselves growing restive and eagerly 
looking forward to the journey's end. 

63 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

But our discomforts are all forgotten in an 
instant. Through a sudden opening in the 
pines a vast wall of dazzling whiteness flings 
itself in bold relief against the intense azure of 
the sky — it is El Capitan, rising sheer almost a 
mile from the floor of the valley and dwarfing 
the giant pines that crowd about its foot. A 
little farther, on the opposite side of the valley, 
Bridal Veil Fall, now shrunken to a silvery 
ribbon, drops its tenuous thread from a cliff a 
thousand feet above us. Then wonders begin to 
crowd upon us from every direction. Cathedral 
Rocks — vast sculptured twin spires, one of them 
rising sheer and solitary for seven hundred feet 
— pierce the skies twenty-six hundred feet above 
us, seemingly laughing to scorn the efforts of 
any mortal architect. Standing side by side 
they have resemblance — perhaps somewhat 
fancied — to the splendid facade of the Duomo of 
Florence. Then the Three Brothers greet our 
vision, and just above us we behold El Capitan 
from an even more impressive viewpoint. 
Yonder is Sentinel Rock, thrusting its rugged 
spire high in the heavens, and we see through 
the pines the effect of Mr. Moran's masterly 
picture, save that the rock looms bald and 
glaring in the noonday sun — not tinged with 
the purple evening shadows of the artist's more 

64 




f:L CAPITAN, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy Southern Pacific Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

poetic rendering. Behind it is Sentinel Dome, 
one of the strange spherical glacier-scarped 
peaks of which we are to see several before we 
leave the valley. 

Ere we have recovered from our astonish- 
ment and while still quite overwhelmed with the 
display of wonders on every hand, we arrive 
at the end of our first day's journey. The coach 
leaves some of its passengers at the camps, but 
several go on to the old-fashioned Sentinel 
Hotel that for forty years has afforded shelter 
and good cheer to Yosemite travelers. 

It is a rambling wooden structure situated 
in the pleasantest spot in the valley. Its veran- 
das to the rear overhang the clear waters of the 
river and a school of trout often flits about 
beneath your eye — too well fed, however, to be 
easily tempted by hook and line. About three- 
quarters of a mile distant there is a full view 
of Yosemite Fall, the highest cataract in the 
world, which has a sheer drop of sixteen hun- 
dred feet from the edge of the cliff over which 
it pours and a total descent of twenty-six hun- 
dred feet to the floor of the valley. It is sadly 
shrunken now, but in the height of its glory in 
May or June a raging torrent thirty-five feet 
wide, breaking almost to white foam ere it 
reaches the bottom, fills the valley with its 

65 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

thunder and the beholder with awe. It stands, 
a column of dazzling white, often edged with 
rainbows, in glorious relief against its back- 
ground of red and yellow granite, and dis- 
appears among the somber pines at its foot. 



66 



II 

UP GLACIER POINT TRAIL 

We reached the hotel shortly before noon 
and had the remainder of the day to enjoy the 
beauty of the surroundings and to rest in antici- 
pation of the strenuous work we had in view 
for the morrow. For we were easily persuaded 
to extend our time another day to take the trail 
to Glacier Point and from thence to Wawona — 
thirteen miles by mule and twenty-six more by 
coach. It is a trip that should occupy two days 
if one has the leisure — but if not, better endure 
a little fatigue than miss it. The trail trip will 
give at least one experience in mountain climb- 
ing, but there is no end of opportunity in this 
direction in the Yosemite, ranging from com- 
paratively easy trails upon which one need not 
dismount, to the hardest possible work on foot. 
Some years ago an enterprising Scotchman by 
the name of Anderson scaled the shining sides 
of Half Dome, climbing a thousand feet of 
perpendicular wall by means of a rope ladder 

67 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

fastened to pegs which he drove into the rock. 
This was used by other adventurers, but finally 
decayed so as to become dangerous and its use 
was forbidden, and for many years no human 
being has set foot on the summit of Half Dome. 
Sentinel Rock, too, seemingly inaccessible as it 
is, has been scaled several times — once by a 
woman. The ascent is difficult and dangerous, 
since the peak rises sheer for a distance of fifteen 
hundred feet. The ascent of El Capitan is not 
so arduous, though it is usually undertaken 
only by the more venturesome. Clouds Rest, 
however, which overtops everything else in the 
vicinity and from which one may look down 
even on Half Dome, may be ascended without 
great danger, though not without fatigue. The 
round trip from Sentinel Hotel comprises about 
twenty-five miles and must be made on mule- 
back. A clear day must be selected, since not 
infrequently the clouds that hover about the 
summit — well named Clouds Rest — will shut 
out the view. Cumulus clouds of dazzling 
whiteness are common in the Yosemite heavens 
and present a scene of unmatched brilliancy as 
they roll along just over the peaks and lie 
sharply against the deep blue skies. "Cloud 
towers by ghostly masons wrought," they add 
much of beauty and weirdness to the more sub- 

68 




MIRROR LAKE, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy S:inta Fe Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

stantial forms of the guardians of the valley. 

It is likely that more than one or two of 
these excursions will be out of question with the 
casual tourist, and if he is to select but one, that 
to Glacier Point by the way of Vernal and 
Nevada Falls is generally chosen. The distance 
is about thirteen miles and the trip is not dif- 
ficult as mountain trails average, though one 
will climb many steep ascents and ride on the 
edge of many yawning precipices — but no dan- 
ger need be apprehended, since the mules are so 
wonderfully sure-footed and cautious that acci- 
dents never occur. 

We are early away next morning, since we 
are to visit Mirror Lake before starting on the 
trail — indeed to have conformed to the best 
traditions we should have come here at day- 
break; for the sunrise effect on the still little 
tarn is famed as a scene of surpassing beauty. 
But Mirror Lake is worth seeing at any time, 
though it is scarcely more than a mountain pool. 
It is surrounded by towering trees and these, 
with every rock and fallen trunk, are reflected 
with marvelous fidelity in the dark and some- 
what sinister-looking water. We view it from 
every angle and the ubiquitous photographer 
insists on a "snapshot" of the party before we 
proceed on our journey. 

69 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

Our party was a small one — some half dozen 
besides our guide — two Belgian counts who were 
just completing a tour of the world, a globe- 
trotting Englishman and a very fussy old lady 
of the propagandist class being among the num- 
ber. The latter rode directly behind me and 
sorely tried the good nature of our guide by 
constant nagging and especially by taking him 
to task for smoking his pipe. He was a typical 
westerner, good natured and loquacious, but 
evidently not overstocked with patience, for he 
muttered a few expletives at the reproof so 
pointedly administered him and rode some dis- 
tance ahead, leading the mount of another 
lady member of the party who was more con- 
siderate of his feelings and to whom he showed 
every courtesy. The old lady followed directly 
behind myself and though my mule was one of 
the most sure-footed — he had been twenty years 
on the trail — she expressed continual concern 
and anxiety lest he should stumble and fall. 
Barney, as they called him, was inclined to be 
pretty slow and paid little heed to my urging. 
As a consequence, Martha — my companion's 
mule — often crowded him closely, at which 
times the old lady's uneasiness seemed to increase 
tenfold. Naturally I could not but be affected 
by her anxiety for my safety — for it surely 

70 




NEVADA FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy Pillsbury Photograph Co. 



.v.i,-7N.':<ii>i»!«\a 



THE YOSEMITE 

must be this that made her take such continual 
interest in Barney's keeping his feet — though 
my doubts were somewhat aroused when I 
noticed that her solicitude for fear "Barney 
would stumble" increased in proportion to her 
proximity to me and when, in a particularly steep 
place, she exclaimed hysterically, '^Barney will 
surely fall down — and Martha will stumble over 
him." 

In ascending the trail we follow the Merced 
for some distance and catch many glimpses of 
swift rapids and of Nevada and Vernal Falls. 
These are two of the finest of the Yosemite 
cataracts, with a good volume of water at all 
times of the year. We continue along the 
riotous river past the Happy Isles and cross a 
rude log bridge from which, barely a half mile 
away, we have a splendid view of Vernal Fall, 
where the river drops sheer three hundred and 
fifty feet — a glorious column of dazzling white 
against the dark background of the canyon. 
From the foot of the cataract a cloud of spray 
rises incessantly and the river, as if mad to 
escape its vexation and turmoil, dashes in wild 
precipitation among the great granite rocks that 
lie scattered along its bed. The trail passes 
directly by the top of the fall and we dismount 
for a short rest and closer view. A mile farther 

71 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

we come to Nevada Fall, twice the height of 
Vernal, though its drop is not so sheer. It 
plunges down the sharply sloping precipice over 
which it writhes like a living thing, green in 
color tone and more compact than a sheer fall, 
but a sight of unmatched grandeur and beauty, 
made the more impressive by the great Liberty 
Cap, an odd granite cone rising two thousand 
feet from the pool at its base. Just back of the 
fall stands Mount Broderick, while Half Dome 
near at hand looks majestically down upon the 
roaring flood. 

And this same Half Dome is the glory of 
Glacier Point Trail, if not indeed of the valley. 
Whatever direction our path twisted we still 
beheld this bald, awful mountain flinging its 
rounded summit, dazzling white, against a clear 
sky of intensest blue. It overshadows and 
dominates everything and one can scarce repress 
an earnest longing to stand on its dreadful 
summit and view the marvelous scene beneath. 
'T was on the Half Dome once," said the guide. 
"There is a flat space of more than eight acres, 
though it doesn't look it from here." I was 
seized with a happy idea — "Some day there will 
be a great hotel on Half Dome. Vernal Fall 
will furnish power to run elevators through 
tunnels to the top." The guide looked at me 

72 




VERNAL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLE1 
Courtesy Santa Fe Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

in amazement and finally said in a sympathetic 
tone, "I'm a-thinking a fellow would be a little 
weak in his upper story to talk of a hotel on 
Half Dome." 

One will be quite ready for dinner when he 
reaches Glacier Point Hotel. The last few 
miles of the trail are devoid of much interest; 
there is little of importance save the yawning 
canyon of the Illilouette — which, were it not 
in a land so replete with greater wonders, 
would be worth a long pilgrimage of itself — and 
the fall of this beautiful stream, which darts 
down a five-hundred-foot precipice. For some 
distance the trail closely hugs the edge of the 
canyon, then crosses a rustic bridge and the final 
ascent is begun through a dense growth of 
chinquapin bushes. The tourist unaccustomed 
to mule-back jaunts on mountain trails will find 
himself pretty sore and weary by the time he 
reaches this point and the decreasing interest of 
the scenery makes the end eagerly desired. 
A most welcome sight is the plain, unpretentious 
inn standing in a grove of fine pines. It affords 
a welcome break in the journey when time per- 
mits and surely it must be well worth remaining 
here over night if only to see sunrise and sunset 
amidst such surroundings. But as it is we must 
make the most of our two hours' pause, and after 

73 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

a hasty luncheon we walk the two or three hun- 
dred yards to the famous Glacier Point view 
from the Overhanging Rock. No marvel of 
Yosemite is more widely known than this mas- 
sive boulder that projects itself so airily from the 
extreme edge of this stupendous cliff. The 
great stone, weighing many tons, apparently 
clings to its perilous perch by the frailest hold 
possible, seeming as if with your weight added it 
must inevitably plunge to the floor of the valley 
more than three thousand feet beneath — so 
sheer that a pebble which one may drop from 
the stone touches nothing in its descent of more 
than half a mile. One sees many photographs 
of venturesome people standing on the edge of 
the rock, but they are doubtless the exceptions, 
for the average visitor feels little inclination to 
go out upon it — nor is it at all necessary to do 
so, since the magnificent scene may be viewed 
safely from behind the iron railings that guard 
the verge of the cliff. 

And it is a scene magnificent beyond all 
power of pen or pencil to portray. Indeed, 
there must come to every beholder something of 
the feeling of the pilgrim of the Earthly Para- 
dise, when 

''Down into the vale he gazed, 
And held his breath, as if amazed 

74 



THE YOSEMITE 

By all its wondrous loveliness. 
For as the sun its depths did bless, 
It lighted up from side to side, 
A close-shut valley, nothing wide. 
But ever full of all things fair." 
Not a few experienced travelers have pro- 
nounced the Glacier Point view the grandest 
sight on earth. It is one that every visitor 
should see, for from this point his eye may 
range over all of the more striking glories of 
Yosemite. Fortunately, the day is perfect, clear 
as crystal to the very verge of the horizon. 
Well might one yield himself up to silent amaze- 
ment as the scene slowly possesses him, for he 
will be totally unable to grasp its full grandeur 
in a moment or even in an hour. There is a 
vague impression of vastness and beauty, but 
it is some time ere the mind is able to dwell on the 
details and to analyze the marvelous landscape 
into its component parts. 

Nearly a mile below lies the narrow green 
vale, its giant pines seemingly shrubbery, its 
streams the merest threads of silver, the hotel 
a child's toy house. Mirror Lake a dot of light 
— yet all is remarkably distinct in the lucent 
daylight; distance has only lessened the size and 
scarcely dimmed the form. Just opposite one 
sees the white swaying ribbon of Yosemite Fall; 

75 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

to the right rises the tremendous bulk of El 
Capitan, which suffers little from the distance, 
and towering just behind this is Eagle Peak. 
A still grander view greets the eye as one turns 
to the left and gazes up the valley. The domi- 
nating feature is the rounded white summit of 
Half Dome, for its bold situation in the fore- 
ground gives the impression of greater height 
than the still loftier Clouds Rest just behind it. 
One is quite overwhelmed by this weird 
glistening mountain, so strangely different that 
it seems as if some titantic architect had planned 
and reared the stately dome as the crowning 
glory of his gigantic palace. When the eye at 
last breaks away from the fascination of this 
strange peak, it ranges over an undulating sea 
of mountains — the high Sierras, which today 
stretch away sharp and clear to the horizon. A 
few billowy, cumulus clouds, like cameos 
against the deep azure of the skies, float just 
above, their intense whiteness outshining the 
flecks of snow yet lingering upon the higher 
altitudes. Vernal and Nevada Falls may be 
seen in the foreground, white pillars standing 
sharply against dark masses of rock and pine 
trees — but why continue my futile effort to set 
forth the glory of Glacier Point panorama in 
words? It has never been done and never will 

76 




VERNAL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy Southern Pacific Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

be done. Only a visit in person will suffice and, 
fortunately, such a visit may now be made with 
little danger or fatigue. Only, one should plan 
to go no further for the day — surely a dozen 
hours are little enough to give to the sublimest 
view that one is likely ever to see. But we were 
not so wise, and mayhap must return again to 
Glacier Point. 



77 



Ill 

TO THE MARIPOSA GROVE 

Our driver cracks his whip over his four 
lusty mountaineers and cries, "All aboard!'' 
The fussy old lady manages to delay the start 
for a quarter of an hour — meditating under a 
tree is her excuse — and the driver, a somewhat 
taciturn fellow at best, starts off in a rather ill 
humor. We sit beside him on the high seat, 
but it is some time before he relaxes to tell us 
something of the legends and curiosities of the 
great Sierra forests through which he has been 
driving for twenty-five years. It is indeed a 
marvelous drive, the twenty-six miles from 
Glacier Point to Wawona, though in retrospect 
the many wonders of the Yosemite and the big 
trees may leave a somewhat tame impression of 
this really delightful stretch of country. 
Nowhere in America are there finer or more 
beautiful individual pine trees — great arrow- 
straight shafts six to ten feet in diameter, rising 
to a height of two to three hundred feet. The 

78 




OVERHANGING ROCK, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy Pillsbury Picture Co. 



.J.I.J. Jim. IK ■.<• 



i.'i',.,i.i;,v:;:"j.. ! .i!i^.. '!; ,w p r 



THE YOSEMITE 

sugar pine, with its golden bark and coat of 
silver-gray needles, is perhaps the most beautiful, 
and takes its name from the sugary gum that 
exudes from a cut or crack in its bark. The 
fine yellow pines are also noticeable, rivaling the 
sugar pine in size and beauty. There are many 
other varieties of conifers in the Yosemite 
forests, of which the Sequoia is the largest and 
most famous. However, one sees none of the 
latter along the road to Wawona — these trees 
are never found isolated among other varieties, 
but invariably in groups. 

Nearly all the pines are heavily draped with 
a yellowish-green parasitic moss which, while 
beautiful to behold, is said to be deadly to the 
trees, slowly sapping their vitality. It first 
takes hold of the lower limbs — often dead ones 
— and gradually climbs to the top of the trees, 
some of which have already yielded to its 
ravages. "It's been just as common as it is now 
during the twenty years I have been in this 
forest," said the driver, "and I guess it can't hurt 
the trees as much as they claim." 

There are many fine deciduous trees and 
much shrubbery, among which the glistening 
mountain mahogany and fruit-laden plum trees 
are commonest. The road, though an old one, 
is poor, stony and very dusty, while the ruts 

79 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

and ditches cause the coach to lurch unmerci- 
fully. The drive of twenty-six miles in four 
hours would be easy enough over a fairly good 
road, but over this mountain trail it is a weari- 
some one and so much time is consumed in 
climbing that it necessitates fast going down 
some of the mountain slopes. It tells heavily 
on the horses, which appear to be about worn 
out at the end of the thirteen mile stage, where 
a fresh relay awaits us. 

The last dozen miles of the drive we shall 
not easily forget. We are somewhat behind 
schedule and the day is declining. The road 
steadily descends the mountain, often dropping 
down sharp declivities or winding — too closely 
for one's peace of mind — along precipitous 
slopes that drop darkly through the pines to a 
rock-strewn stream far below. Down we go, 
the horses on a sharp trot and the coach swaying 
and plunging behind. One has to admire the 
skill of the driver, who keeps his four closely in 
hand, making each horse do his share of the 
work, carefully guiding them and often saving 
them from an apparently disastrous stumble. 
We are already sore from the trail trip of the 
morning, but that was as nothing compared with 
this coach ride. We hardly note the glorious 
sunset vistas through the pines by the roadside 

80 



THE YOSEMITE 

— often far-reaching over forest-clad peaks 
which stand in sharp relief against the glowing 
sky, while a soft blue haze half hides the valleys. 

Night comes on before we reach our desti- 
nation and it is an hour or two after sunset when 
the lights of Wawona finally glimmer through 
the trees. We descend from our perch with 
difficulty and welcome indeed is the open- 
handed hospitality of the well-ordered inn. 
There are several cottages besides the main 
hotel building, all situated in beautifully kept 
grounds with fountains and flower-beds. Every- 
thing is strictly modern and first-class. At 
breakfast mountain trout is served, which is the 
only time we have this delicacy — erroneously 
supposed to be a common article of diet at the 
inns and camps of the valley. 

The genial landlord tries to dissuade us 

when he learns that we expect to visit the big 

trees and return to El Portal on the next day. 

To do this we must rise at five and accomplish 

a stage drive of fifty miles over roads rather 

worse than any we have yet traversed — truly a 

strenuous program to follow upon such a day as 

we have just finished. It would have been more 

sensible to remain another day at Wawona, to 

see the big trees at our leisure and take one or 

more of the interesting drives in the neighbor- 
si 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

hood. The round trip from the hotel through 
the big tree grove is seventeen miles, and this 
of itself would be quite enough to occupy the 
day if time permitted; one should spend hours 
under these primeval titans and perchance some- 
thing of their mystery might be dispelled and 
somewhat of their majesty enter the soul. But 
our tour through the wonderlands was carefully 
planned in advance — we must go on schedule. 
We know now that this should never be done. 
Give yourself a margin of a week when planning 
your trip if you intend to make the round 
suggested in this book. 

As I have intimated, one who comes from 
Yosemite is well schooled in wonders ere he 
reaches the Big Trees of Mariposa, and the 
drive from Wawona passes a forest of pines so 
gigantic that many suppose them the famous 
Sequoias until better informed. But when one 
finally enters the charmed circle where the Red- 
wood titans stand and catches his first sight of 
their cinnamon-colored trunks — twenty feet or 
more in diameter — all the great conifers pre- 
viously beheld shrink to the dimension of 
ordinary telephone poles. And there is no mis- 
taking the Redwood after once seeing it, for it 
is quite distinctive, both in bark and foliage; one 
might describe it as a cross between the cedar 

82 



THE YOSEMITE 

and yellow pine, for it bears some characteristics 
of both. Its height, rarely over three hundred 
feet, is much less in proportion to its girth than 
that of the pines in general, nor are the highest 
Sequoias as a rule of the greatest diameter, since 
the Grizzly Giant, the king of them all, is but 
two hundred and twenty-five feet high. This 
is accounted for on the theory that such trees 
must have suffered numerous thunder strokes 
in the course of the ages. 

Once among the trees, however, one is quite 
unable to realize their stupendous size. He has, 
in truth, become so inured to the stupendous 
by this time that everything has shrunken and 
it takes the figures of actual dimensions to 
awaken a true realization of the mighty propor- 
tions of these splendid trees. We pause beneath 
one of them. "The Grizzly Giant," laconically 
remarks our driver, and it comes to us that we 
are perhaps gazing on the oldest living thing on 
this earth of ours; for John Muir, the greatest 
authority on the Sierra forests, declares that 
this hoary monarch of the wood has undoubtedly 
weathered the storms of upwards of six thou- 
sand years. A placard tells us that the diameter 
of the tree is thirty-four feet, but we must needs 
pace it round to make sure, and finding it true 
we can accept the assurance that one million feet 

83 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

of board lumber — perish the thought — could be 
cut from the Grizzly Giant. No wonder the 
lumber kings look greedily upon him! A limb 
one hundred feet from the ground measures 
seven feet in diameter, and one must think of a 
tree of this size apart from the Sierra giants to 
realize what it means. There are three hundred 
and sixty-five trees in the Mariposa Grove, but 
Mr. Muir thinks that the Giant is the only one 
that has reached the zenith of its growth. The 
age of such a tree must necessarily be more or 
less a matter of conjecture, but Mr. Muir counted 
the rings of annual growth on a much smaller 
one which had fallen and proved conclusively 
that it had lived upwards of four thousand 
years. In any event, the Grizzly Giant and his 
hoary companions were flourishing hale and 
green long before authentic records of human 
history were made, and even before the once 
accepted date of the creation of the world. A 
strange sense of awe verging upon reverence 
creeps over one as he meditates on these impres- 
sive facts in the presence of these splendid trees. 
All show to some extent the ravages of a fire that 
swept among them some time prior to their 
discovery by white men, and which was no doubt 
responsible for the absence of young trees and 
undergrowth. 

84 




GRIZZLY GIANT," MARIPOSA GROVE, CALIFORNIA 
Courtesy Pillsbury Picture Co. 



THE YOSEMITE 

The road winds through the grove, giving 
an opportunity to view the largest trees at close 
range. These have been named mainly for the 
different states, though some of them commemo- 
rate the visits of distinguished men, including 
Generals Sherman and Grant. At one point the 
road passes through the famous archway cut in 
the **Wawona," some ten feet square, easily 
permitting the passage of the coaches. We 
descend and measure our own pygmy height 
beside the "Fallen Monarch," which succumbed 
to some cataclysm years ago — a vast prone 
trunk twenty-eight feet in diameter at the base. 
One appreciates its great size more fully than 
that of the standing trees of the same dimen- 
sions. We may climb a ladder and walk the 
entire length of the trunk, which as yet shows 
little traces of decay. A popular photo shows a 
coach-and-six using the tree as a driveway — 
possibly a "fake" of some clever photographer, 
but it must have cost some effort and ingenuity 
if the vehicle and horses were really gotten into 
the position shown in the picture. Just what 
overthrew this great tree is not easy to conceive. 
It may have been a terrific storm, though if this 
were the cause, it is difficult to understand why 
others of the larger trees were not blown down 
as well. 

S5 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

There is one of the trees still standing 
which was hollowed out by fire and one may 
look at the sky through the trunk, perhaps a 
hundred feet in height. It is known as the tele- 
scope tree, and no doubt someone in almost 
every party suffers from the driver's wit in 
being assured that "the stars can be plainly 
seen through the hollow trunk." "Why, I can't 
see any," is the invariable exclamation of the 
curious tourist who strains his eyes up the great 
black tube. "O, you will have to come at night, 
of course," gleefully rejoins the driver, none the 
less enjoying a joke he has repeated daily. for 
perhaps a dozen years. 

The discoverer of the Mariposa Grove was 
Mr. Galen Clark, who at the time of our visit 
was an old man in his ninety-sixth year, though 
he was then still hale and strong. He made his 
home among the great trees, which he loved as 
friends and comrades, and was delighted to meet 
the tourists who came to his cabin. He first 
learned of the trees in 1857 from the Indians, 
whose name for the now famous grove was 
Wahwonah. Since these lines were written the 
old pioneer has passed peacefully away, and his 
last request was that he might be buried among 
the giant trees he loved so well. No fitter 
monument could be given him than one of these 

86 




'VKRM<)NI \\U 'W AW < ).\A. M A l>: I l'( )S A (.ku\|-. 
Courtesy Southern Pacific Railway 



(■.AI.iloKMA 



THE YOSEMITE 

old friends of his, which bears the name of Galen 
Clark and an inscription to his memory. 

There are many thousands of these trees in 
different parts of the coast country — John Muir 
thinks as many as six thousand above fifteen 
feet in diameter. The name of the species, 
Sequoia, is that of a California Indian Chief, — 
more appropriate indeed than Wellingtonia, 
which a patriotic English explorer urged for 
adoption. There are two varieties, the Sequoia 
Gigantea, usually found in the higher altitudes, 
and the Sequoia Sempervirens or Redwood, 
which are more frequent in the lowlands along 
the coast. These seldom grow to the huge size 
of the Gigantea — and furnish the redwood 
lumber of commerce, which closely resembles 
cedar. 

The problem of felling these great trees is 
a difficult one — a fortunate thing, for that 
matter. It will be recalled that the section of a 
Sequoia, perhaps thirty feet in diameter, was 
exhibited at the Chicago Fair in 1893. This 
came from the King's River Grove. Such trees 
were at first felled by the use of pump augers, 
with which holes were bored parallel to each 
other, until the entire trunk was severed, but 
improved cutting machinery makes the task far 
easier now. Mr. Hutchings tells of one tree that 

87 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

defied every effort of the lumbermen to over- 
throw it, although it had been entirely severed; 
but after some days of fruitless effort a gust of 
w^ind brought the giant to the earth w^ith a crash 
while the men were at dinner. 

But it is painful even to write of felling a 
Sequoia. What right has man in a few days to 
destroy the majesty and beauty that has required 
fifty or sixty centuries to produce? Several of 
the groves have fortunately passed under 
National protection, though some of them — 
notably this one at Calavaras, sixty miles north 
of Yosemite and one of the finest of all — are still 
owned by private parties. The Calavaras Grove 
belongs to a lumber company, but its distance 
from railroads has as yet protected it from 
destruction; it is to be hoped that it will be 
purchased by the Government and opened to the 
public. To visit this grove one should go by 
rail to Sonora and from thence thirty-five miles 
by wagon road. 

Though the Sequoia trees have never been 
found outside of a limited area in the Sierras 
and seldom below an elevation of seven thousand 
feet, they appear to grow readily and rapidly 
elsewhere. Mr. Hutchings cites an instance of 
one of these trees, transplanted to an English 
nobleman's park, attaining a height of sixty 



THE YOSEMITE 

feet and a girth of ten feet in about thirty years. 
The trees would therefore appear to be admir- 
ably adapted to the purpose of reforestation. 
They are extremely hardy and unless over- 
thrown by some catastrophe or felled by the 
woodman, live for ages. Of this John Muir 
says, "They seem to be immortal, being exempt 
from all the diseases that afflict and kill other 
trees. Unless destroyed by man, they live on 
indefinitely until burned, smashed by lightning, 
cast down by storms, or by the giving away of 
the ground upon which they stand. The age 
of the one that was felled in the Calavaras Grove 
for the sake of having its stump for a dancing 
floor, was about thirteen hundred years, and its 
diameter, measured across the stump, twenty- 
four feet inside the bark. Another that was 
felled in the King's River Forest, a section of 
which was shipped to the World's Fair at 
Chicago, was nearly a thousand years older 
(twenty-two hundred years), though not a very 
old-looking tree. The colossal scarred monu- 
ment in the King's River Forest mentioned 
above is burned half through, and I spent a day 
in making an estimate of its age, clearing away 
the charred surface with an ax, and carefully 
counting the annual rings with the aid of a 
pocket lens. The wood rings in the section I 

89 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

laid bare were so involved and contorted in some 
places that I vv^as not able to determine its age 
exactly, but I counted over four thousand rings, 
v^hich showed that this tree was in its prime, 
swaying in the Sierra winds, when Christ walked 
the earth." 



90 



IV 
THE RETURN TO EL PORTAL 

We had early luncheon at Wawona and 

before noon set out on the thirty-five mile drive 

to El Portal. The day was quite warm and 

the first dozen miles, being steadily up grade, 

were covered at a snail's pace. We could not 

escape the dust which arose in clouds beneath 

the horses' feet and ere long many of our party 

would pass for aborigines, so begrimed were 

their faces. The fussy old lady, still with us, 

again aroused the ire of the driver. She plied 

him with foolish questions, to which he grunted 

unwilling answers. She wanted to know the 

names of the horses and finally learned that the 

leaders were ''Colonel" and "Walnut." The road 

sorely tried the animals, which required continual 

urging and pretty free use of the whip. They 

were allowed frequent breathing spells, but the 

driver seemed to think that vigorous applications 

of the whip and pretty strong language were 

necessary to keep them going. And, indeed, if 

91 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

left to themselves they apparently would have 
stopped every ten yards in climbing the long 
grade; but clearly if v^e w^ere to reach El Portal 
ere night they must be kept going. This 
necessity w^as quite forgotten by the old lady in 
her sympathy for the v^eary horses and she con- 
tinually beseeched the driver to "let Colonel and 
Walnut rest awhile." Finally when for the 
twentieth time she had importuned him, he 
turned squarely around facing her, with — 
''Madam, I am driving these horses. Will you 
please keep quiet?" which silenced her for the 
time being — at least so far as nagging the driver 
was concerned. 

But Colonel and Walnut soon get their 
rest none the less, for after three or four hours 
of painful creeping we find ourselves at the 
thirteen-mile station, where we pause for a 
change of horses. The occupants of the coach 
are perhaps nearly as weary as the animals we 
leave behind, but after a ten-minutes' respite, 
barely time to dismount and stretch one's 
cramped legs, the crack of the driver's whip is 
a signal for resuming our journey. So far we 
have been retracing our way over the road that 
we followed in going to Wawona, but we leave 
it at this point and continue on the old Raymond 
stage road that enters the western end of the 

92 




BRIDAL VEIL FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 

Courtesy Santa Fe Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

valley. The characteristics of the country for 
the next ten miles show little variation; pine- 
clad mountains and pleasant vales through 
which the road winds afford many fine vistas, 
but nothing that in any way prepares us for the 
scene that bursts on our vision at Inspiration 
Point — well named, indeed, for it must surely 
be a prosaic imagination that does not kindle 
with enthusiasm at the prospect. "It comes up 
to the brag," is what Ralph Waldo Emerson 
said after contemplating it long in silence — or 
at least that is what the guide books and railroad 
literature credit him with having said. It 
sounds strangely unlike our staid and gentle 
philosopher, whose language we are wont to 
admire as the finality in polished English. 
But it expresses one's feelings more strongly, 
perhaps, than fine words. We have been led to 
expect much; they have assured us, and we have 
often read, that the view from Inspiration Point 
is surpassed by few panoramas in the world — if 
indeed by any — for grandeur of mountain, cliff 
and peak and for beauty of contour and color, 
and all of these are enhanced by the magic of 
the hour when we are so fortunate as to see it. 
The valley lies before us in the soft blue haze of 
the evening shadows, and its encompassing walls 
and towers are kindled with the purple and 

93 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

golden hues of the sunset. As one contemplates 
the glittering peaks and domes and the ranges 
of glowing mountains out beyond, he can realize 
John Muir's characterization of the Sierras as 
the "Mountains of Light." The grandeur of 
Inspiration Point seems more of cliffs and spires, 
of towering walls and mountain peaks, while 
from Glacier Point one is perhaps more inter- 
ested in the details of the valley itself. But from 
either point one may witness a scene that will 
possess his soul and whose beauty will linger 
through the years. We regret the necessity 
which hurries us from the scene, for the pause of 
the stage coach is but momentary. We have 
had but a glimpse of a landscape that might 
well hold one's rapt attention for hours. 

But we have come to the most exciting 
portion of our tour — we begin our ride down 
the mountainside into the valley. If one is 
inclined to be nervous, he had better close his 
eyes and trust to Providence — and the skill of 
the driver. He will doubtless be safe enough, 
for there are no recorded accidents, dangerous 
as the descent seems at the time. The road 
zigzags in sharp angles and steep grades down 
the rim of the valley; in many places there is less 
than a foot between our coach wheels and a sheer 
sickening precipice. On we go, the horses in a 

94 




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THE YOSEMITE 

sharp trot and the coach lunging along the 
uneven road or swinging around the sharp 
curves. We pay little attention to the fine 
views that continually present themselves as we 
descend — our minds are not free from apprehen- 
sion by any means — and we find ourselves 
tensely watching our driver with not a little 
admiration for his masterly skill. How confi- 
dently he handles his spanking four, swinging 
them in wide circles around the corners, keeping 
a tight rein that checks many incipient stumbles 
and encouraging the horses with words they 
appear well to understand. 

It seems a long three miles to the floor of 
the valley and it is with a sigh of relief that we 
look up the cliff down which we have been 
plunging. We pause just at the foot of Bridal 
Veil Fall and change to the regular coach 
between the Sentinel Hotel and El Portal. Our 
journey is not yet at an end, for we have eight 
miles to go — only eight miles, but we are so 
tired and travel-worn that every mile is a 
league. The coach seems barely to creep along 
the rough road — inches deep with dust, which 
rolls up in white stifling clouds from beneath 
our wheels. Surely we must be near our desti- 
nation — but the driver laconically informs us 
that we have five miles still. Five miles! — we 

95 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

have come but three. (We settle back in dumb 
despair, not venturing to ask again. Better the 
ignorance of hope than the distress of such 
positive knowledge. 

Never v^as the sight of hostelry more 
welcome than the huge brown bulk of the Del 
Portal through the pine trees that crowd around 
it. Yes, the genial manager can give us rooms 
with bath, large comfortable rooms on the first 
floor with every facility for finally separating 
ourselves from the dust of Yosemite. We come 
forth to our late dinner, somewhat sore and 
weary, to be sure, but with a feeling of cleanli- 
ness and relief that quite atones for all the 
hardships of the day. We have been wise 
enough to take plain old clothes for our sojourn, 
both here and in the Yellowstone — a precaution 
which will contribute not a little to comfort and 
satisfaction, for it would be next to impossible 
to enjoy oneself in ordinary attire. We have 
a night's rest too deep for dreams in the Del Por- 
tal's capacious beds and in the morning start out 
on our return trip down the Merced Canyon. 
The new Yosemite Road runs first-class trains, 
with parlor observation cars that enable us to 
see many picturesque vistas along the river to 
good advantage. 

The valley falls rapidly toward the great 

96 




YOSEMITE FALLS, YOSEMITE VALLEY 
Courtesy Southern Pacific Railway 



THE YOSEMITE 

level plain surrounding the pretty little town of 
Merced, and the stream pursues a riotous course 
for many miles, often breaking into foaming 
rapids among the huge boulders strewn along 
its bed. The railway crosses and recrosses it 
many times — no small engineering skill being 
evinced in its construction. There are many 
relics to be seen of the mining operations of half 
a century ago — in fact, the white man's eager- 
ness for gold was one of the factors leading to 
the discovery of the valley. One is continually 
reminded of this activity of 
"The days of old, 
The days of gold, 
The days of forty-nine," 
by abandoned mines at different points along the 
river. Mines are still being worked in the 
valley by modern methods, a twenty stamp mill 
being operated at Mountain King. A little 
farther is the picturesque Bagby dam, the un- 
couth modern designation for the old-time 
Benton Mills, named for Jessie Benton Fre- 
mont. To see the Merced at its best, however, 
one must come earlier, for late in August the 
stream is much shrunken, though still pictur- 
esque and beautiful. 

At Merced Fall the railroad enters the San 
Joaquin Valley and follows the broad still 

97 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

stretches of the river, which here gives little 
evidence of its turbulent sources. On every 
hand are prosperous farms v^rith orchards, vine- 
yards, rich pastures and all the thousand things 
that make California an enchanted land. In 
the far distance glisten the silver peaks of the 
High Sierras, in w^hose bosom lies the marvelous 
vale of beauty whose memory will live with us 
so long as life shall last. 



98 



GEOLOGY, HISTORY AND GENERAL 
INFORMATION 

The probable geologic origin and the dis- 
covery by white men of such a stupendous 
natural wonder as the Yosemite Valley are full 
of interest to most of those who visit the place. 
What tremendous convulsion of nature produced 
this deep narrow rent in the serried ranks of the 
High Sierras ages and ages ago — so long that 
the angles have been softened and the debris 
clothed with verdure and gigantic trees 
wherever these hardy adventurers can find a 
footing in the rocks ? Scientists have advanced 
many theories, more or less plausible, to account 
for the strange phenomenon. Perhaps, they 
said, it was some titanic earthquake caused by 
volcanic action in pre-glacial days that split the 
mountains in twain and time made the floor of 
the valley by filling the rent with detritus. 
Perhaps some strange subsidence here prolonged 
through ages formed the valley and it may be 

99 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

that such subsidence still is going on. Or did 
some torrential river gradually erode this deep 
pass through which the Merced now courses? 
These and other conjectures have been advanced, 
but latterly the trend of opinion is in favor of the 
theory of glacial erosion — that in time too 
remote to be conceived a great mass of ice a 
mile or more in depth ploughed its way toward 
the sea, rounding and polishing the granite peaks 
into the glittering domes which we see today and 
grinding and cutting the deep fissure that 
now forms the valley. All of this is incompre- 
hensible to the layman's mind, but the geologist 
finds conclusive proof of the theory. Professor 
LeConte, the greatest authority on this question, 
reminds us that a thousand years are as a 
moment in the history of geologic action; if time 
enough be allowed we may account for the con- 
dition now existing in Yosemite. Clear evidence 
of glacial action is found in many places in the 
vicinity, and the guide on Glacier Point Trail 
will not fail to call your attention to polished 
spots on a boulder at the head of Vernal Fall. 
This strange rock is many times harder than the 
granite in which it was embedded; so much so 
that it now projects nearly six feet above the 
granite rock around it. Evidences of glacial 
action may also be seen on the summit of Half 

100 



THE YOSEMITE 

Dome, which John Muir declares must at one 
time have lain beneath a mountain of ice a mile 
in height. Glaciers, he asserts, have made every 
mountain form in the whole Sierran System, 
whose mountain peaks are only fragments of 
their pre-glacial selves. 

So much for its natural history, imposing 
indeed as compared with the half century since 
its discovery by the white man. Secluded as it 
is deep in the heart of trackless wilds, one may 
not wonder that its existence was so long un- 
known even to the mountaineer; but when the 
thirst for gold aroused the energy and spirit of 
adventure in the California pioneer, many of the 
strange beauty spots of the Sierras were destined 
to be opened to the world. The first glimpse 
of this valley came to Dr. Bunnell in 1849, when 
leading a company of Mariposa scouts in search 
of hostile Indians. He saw the awe-inspiring 
form of El Capitan from a distance and declared : 

"Although I was familiar with nature in her 
wildest moods, I looked upon this awe-inspiring 
column with wonder and admiration. While 
vainly endeavoring to realize its peculiar promi- 
nence and vast proportions, I turned from it with 
reluctance to resume the search for coveted gold ; 
but the impressions of that scene were indelibly 
fixed in my memory. I made many inquiries 

101 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

concerning the scenery of that locality, but few 
of the miners had noticed any of its special 
peculiarities. A year or more passed before the 
mysteries of this wonderful land were satis- 
factorily solved. 

"During the winter of 1850-51, I was at- 
tached to an expedition that made the first 
discovery of what is now known to the civilized 
world as Yosemite Valley, that is 'not only won- 
derful in depths and heights, but in its carved 
and water-quarried recesses and mountain walls 
that exhibit new beauties in every receding angle 
and cloud-supporting buttress.' " 

A band of Indians under a shrewd old chief 
by the name of Ten-ie-ya were immediately re- 
sponsible for the expeditions that led to the 
discovery of the valley. Located in the fast- 
nesses of the stupendous walls, these savages 
imagined themselves safe from pursuit of the 
white man and proceeded to plunder the settlers 
who lived in the Merced Valley. The expedition 
referred to above resulted in the surrender of the 
Indians, who, promising good behavior, were 
allowed to return with their chief to their haunts 
in the valley. It was hardly a year afterwards, 
however, before they were at their old tactics and 
on May 8, 1852, they murdered a party of pros- 
pectors who entered the valley. Another expe- 

102 



THE YOSEMITE 

dition was sent against them which resulted in 
the capture and execution of five of the Indian 
braves. The great majority of the Yosemites, 
however, escaped to the hills and found refuge 
among the Monos, a tribe friendly to them. 
This, however, proved their complete undoing, 
for they learned of a troop of horses which the 
Monos had stolen from the whites. They 
immediately planned the spoliation of their 
friends and pilfered a number of their animals. 
While gorging themselves on one of the horses 
which they had killed, the Monos descended 
upon them and nearly exterminated the tribe, 
including Ten-ie-ya, the chief. This practically 
ended the Indian troubles in Yosemite. 

The first tourist party — if we may style it 
such — was arranged in 1855 by Mr. J. M. Hutch- 
ings, whose name will long be remembered in 
connection with the Yosemite. There were only 
three of the adventurers in all, and guided by an 
Indian, they saw the wonders which have since 
become so famous. Their published accounts 
were received with some incredulity, though in 
reality they were rather underdrawn. Mr. 
Hutchings was so pleased with the surroundings 
that he eventually made his home in this valley 
and later on became, with several other settlers 
the occasion of much legal entanglement as the 

103 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

result of the donation of the Yosemite to the 
state of California by Act of Congress. This 
act took no account of the rights of the settlers 
who had made their home in the valley and for 
a time they were threatened with ejectment. 
Mr. Hutchings made a trip to Washington in 
their interests and while waiting the action of 
Congress did much to spread the fame of the 
great natural wonder by delivering no less than 
seventy-five illustrated lectures. A law was 
eventually enacted for the relief of the few 
people who had made their homes in the valley 
and Mr. Hutchings continued to reside there 
until his death, which was caused by being 
thrown from a mountain wagon in 1902. He 
published in 1888 a large, beautifully illustrated 
volume, "In the Heart of the Sierras," which 
contains much interesting historical and descrip- 
tive matter. 

As Yosemite and the big tree groves in- 
creased in popularity with tourists yearly, it was 
rightly concluded that the National Government 
should properly be the custodian of these great 
natural wonders as well as those of the Yellow- 
stone Park. Therefore, in 1905 the California 
Legislature passed an act receding the park to 
the United States Government. This covered 
only the original tract of about forty-eight square 

104 



THE YOSEMITE 

miles which had been given to California in 
1860, but Congress in accepting the recession in 
1906 created a great park of fifteen hundred 
square miles. This included the big tree grove 
of Mariposa and much of the fine forest land of 
the country surrounding the valley. Improve- 
ments are slow^ly being made and it is to be hoped 
that the National Government w^ill show more 
liberality in appropriations for road construction. 
The Yosemite Railroad to El Portal has vastly 
increased the number of tourists, which now 
reaches twelve to fifteen thousand annually. An 
electric road from Raymond to Wawona is pro- 
jected, which would make the big trees much 
easier of access and no doubt bring tourists in 
still greater numbers. 

Wild animals in Yosemite are not so 
numerous, nor are the diflferent species so well 
represented as in Yellowstone. Bears are not 
common, despite the very name, Yosemite, which 
signifies "full grown grizzly." Other varieties 
are occasionally found, though they are not so 
tame as the Yellowstone natives. Deer of dif- 
ferent varieties are now rarely seen, though 
under present restrictions on hunting they are 
increasing in numbers. Squirrels, chipmunks 
and woodchucks are common and often amuse 
the tourist by their fearless antics. 

105 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

Snakes are found in all parts of the park. 
Our guide pointed out a spot where he had 
killed a rattler a day or two before on Glacier 
Point Trail. They are not common, however, 
and there is no record of a tourist ever having 
been bitten. Of harmless snakes and lizards 
there are many varieties, including the ugly but 
innocuous horned toad. 

Birds are increasing in numbers, but not 
many are seen by the casual tourist. Naturally 
the shy songsters prefer the retired woods and to 
see them one would have to linger and explore 
nooks and corners. Water fowl often come in 
season but do not stay long, and John Muir 
relates that he has seen wild geese exhaust 
themselves by evident miscalculation of the 
height of the cliffs and finally leave the valley by 
the river canyon. Mountain quail, blue grouse 
and sage-cock frequent the pines, though seldom 
on the routes of tourist travel. Of songbirds 
there are the endless varieties common in the 
California land of sunshine, the robin, thrush, 
finch and the brilliant oriole being the oftenest 
heard. Many species of humming birds are 
found among the flowers, fairylike creatures with 
iridescent plumage, darting about like sunbeams. 
Many varieties of the birds nest in the valley in 
summertime and now rear their young in com- 

106 



THE YOSEMITE 

parative safety, the predatory animals such as 
the coyote and skunk having been nearly 
exterminated. 

Hunting is of course strictly prohibited; 
firearms are not even allowed in the park 
without special permit from the authorities. As 
a result of this wise provision, the wild animals 
and birds are increasing and becoming constantly 
less shy. Fishing is permitted with hook and 
line only and aifords very good sport in many of 
the streams. 

Yosemite may now be easily reached at any 
time of the year and a local writer declares that 
each season has its advantages. "Yosemite can 
be visited all the year round, and each season has 
its own special delights. In the spring the 
melting snow turns the streams which feed the 
waterfalls into torrents, and the down-rushing 
water is in full volume; on every side are rivulets, 
leaping cascades and reverberating waterfalls; 
in the summer the highest trails are accessible, 
the weather is delightful and the whole atmos- 
phere has a mellow, golden quality that at once 
rests and invigorates; in the autumn the air is 
clear, every outline and wonderful profile of rock 
and crag, of giant column and massive dome, 
stands out as though etched against the sky, the 
leaves are gently fading through a myriad 

107 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

shades of green and red and bronze — it is the 
artist's paradise of color; and in winter, with the 
valley floor hidden beneath a snowy cover, with 
red snow plants thrusting their way through the 
white surface like tongues of flame, with every 
tree and plant drooping gracefully under its 
wintry burden, with marvelous icicles, like great 
stalactites, hanging from tower and pinnacle and 
over-arching rock, who shall say which is the 
best time to visit this wondrous garden of the 
Sierra?" 

But, after all, if one can choose his time, the 
early summer is no doubt best. In May the 
streams are usually at high tide, but some of the 
trails are likely to be closed by snow. By the 
middle of June these will be open and a consid- 
erable volume of water still coming down the 
falls. But if one can plan two visits — certainly 
none too many for such a wonderland — let him 
come late in April and make a round of the 
valley itself. Then he will see the riotous 
Merced and the lofty waterfalls in all their 
power and glory. Another trip late in July or 
August will afford a better opportunity for 
mountain climbing and visiting the great trees. 
The rush of the tourist season will then be over 
and accommodations will average better. In 
the springtime the air will be cool and bracing 

108 



THE YOSEMITE 

and bring wraps in demand, while in late summer 
the heat is sometimes intense. Linen dusters 
and broad-brimmed straw hats are then most 
serviceable, and in no case should one forget a 
pair of auto goggles. Without these the eyes 
are likely to suffer much; smoked or slightly 
tinted glasses are best. Old clothes that one 
doesn't care for are most serviceable, since any 
good attire would speedily be the worse for 
mule-back climbs and long dusty coach rides. 
In season, during May, June and July especially, 
transportation facilities are likely to be inade- 
quate and hotels and camps greatly crowded, so 
one will be more comfortable if careful planning 
in advance is done and reservations definitely 
made. 



109 



The Grand Canyon 
I 

A FIRST GLIMPSE OF THE GRAND CANYON 

If the Yellowstone leaves a predominating 
impression of weirdness upon the mind — and the 
Yosemite of beauty — what shall we say of this 
vast Arizonian chasm where weirdness strives 
with beauty for the mastery? It is so unlike 
anything else on earth that the most hardened 
traveler is unprepared for its revelations; no- 
where else has he seen — or may he see — its 
match for strangeness and beauty in color and 
form. Here the Architect Divine planned a 
succession of pyramids and palaces of over- 
whelming immensity and past human imagining 
in their ever-changing riot of color. Here the 
artisans of the ages, fire and wind and flood, 
have wrought an endless array of gigantic struct- 
ures which no mortal mind could have conceived 
and no mortal hand have reared. The memory 
of it is as the memory of some splendid but 
fantastic dream and at times it is hard to con- 

110 



THE GRAND CANYON 

vince myself, who have seen with my own eyes 
this crowning wonder of the American West that 
it has existence in reality. And I hesitate to 
attempt the task of portraying its marvels in 
words, knowing that I must fail as all before 
me have failed to a greater or lesser degree to 
measure up to the grandeur and beauty of the 
scenes I would describe. But I shall have the 
great advantage of supplementing my words 
with Mr. Moran's splendid pictures, which 
perhaps come nearer than any other agency to 
bringing the scenes of the Grand Canyon to the 
eyes of those who have never visited it, and in 
this particular, at least, I have ample warrant for 
my venture. If words and pictures combine to 
turn the feet of the appreciative American 
traveler to one of the most soul-inspiring works 
of Nature in our own land, it is enough. 

The California Limited, on the Santa Fe Trail, 
brings us early to Williams, where we linger an 
hour or two about the Fra Marcos, an inn that 
gives the sensation of pleasant surprise that the 
wayfayer nearly always experiences when he 
first becomes the guest of a Fred Harvey hotel. 
It is a long, low building with stuccoed walls — 
a monotone of friar's gray quite in keeping with 
its name, and it has a pleasant colonnade front- 
ing directly on the railway tracks. One finds 

111 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

the spacious lobby homelike and cheerful, bright 
with the coloring of Navajo rugs and Indian 
pottery; the private rooms are immaculate in 
their cleanliness and supplied with every con- 
venience, and the dining-room service measures 
up to the famous Harvey standard. There is 
the usual curio room with the thousand and one 
trinkets in Mexican jewelry and all the quaint 
and charming handiwork of the aborigines of the 
Southwest. It is a pleasant place to linger about 
and we hear with little concern that our train is 
to be an hour or two behind schedule in leaving 
for the Canyon. 

And when it does leave it proceeds rather 
slowly through a wide sunlit plain, pale green 
from recent rains, though here and there flaming 
with the crimson and golden glory of strange 
wild flowers. There is in the sixty miles but 
little of diversity — no hint of the tremendous 
spectacle that is shortly to greet our vision. As 
we approach our destination we enter a forest of 
towering pines, amidst which stands the unpre- 
tentious station. It is but a few minutes' walk 
to the hotel — for we have elected to stop at the 
El Tovar — and as we enter its wide rustic 
veranda we catch a fugitive glimpse of a vast 
red and purple abysm — the Grand Canyon of 
the Colorado River. But it is only a glimpse, 

112 



THE GRAND CANYON 

and we hasten into the hotel to attend to the 
necessary formalities. The room assigned us 
opens on a balcony from which we get our first 
extensive view of the Canyon, which lies before 
us clear and sharp beneath the cloudless noonday 
sky. A dozen miles away the opposite rim rises 
like an alabaster wall above the predominating 
reds and yellows of the lower strata. 

The sweep of our vision covers hundreds of 
square miles of the Canyon — an infinity of moun- 
tains, towers, domes, spires, strange temples and 
palaces, glowing with every conceivable color, 
all marvelously distinct today, distance alone 
softening the outlines with a thin blue haze. 
Words can not give any adequate idea of the 
immensity of the chasm; the Canyon of the 
Yellowstone might lie quite unnoticed among a 
dozen rivals; Yosemite, with all its vastness, 
might be quite lost in this wilderness of cliffs and 
peaks; the bulk of Mount Washington is no 
greater than that of some of the prismatic hills 
that rear their fantastic shapes in yonder abysm 
below us. All our previous standards of com- 
parison must be revised; we have seen much of 
the world, but nothing to be fitly likened to this 
giant gorge. Who would think the vexed river, 
seen from rare points of vantage on the rim as a 
fleck of dull silver in the wide expanse of warmer 

113 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

coloring, a torrential flood almost equal in 
volume to the Father of Waters? It is hard 
indeed to form a true conception of bulk and dis- 
tance, but such comparisons may assist the mind 
to a truer appreciation of the scene that at first 
quite overwhelms it. It is only gradually that 
the individual features of the great panorama 
come out before one's vision; slowly the weird 
architectural forms take shape out of the chaos 
that at first confuses you. You experience a 
strange feeling of familiarity with some of them 
— was it in some old volume of fairy tales, some 
half-forgotten story of India or Egypt or some 
well-fingered copy of the Arabian Nights that 
you saw the prototypes of these enchanted 
palaces? Or did you, perchance, in some 
previous state of existence, wander among such 
wondrous forms — now lingering in your soul as 
the haziest possible memory? And when you 
learn the fanciful names they bear, you are all 
the more confirmed in your surmise. Manu 
Temple, Buddha Temple, Shiva Temple, Temple 
of Sett, Vishnu Temple, and many other sugges- 
tive names show that this dim sense of 
semblance to strange temples of the Orient has 
come to other minds than yours. 

A longing comes upon you to descend into 
the vast chasm, to gaze on its many-colored walls 

114 



THE GRAND CANYON 

at close range, and to look upwards to the stu- 
pendous forms now lying so far beneath your 
eye. It seems an almost impossible aspiration — 
where may one find foot-hold among these 
beetling walls, and how may he cross those 
yawning ravines? But it may be accomplished 
easily enough — the hardy pioneers of the Canyon 
have sought out several practicable trails to the 
river and considerable work has been expended 
to make these fairly safe, though none of them 
can truthfully be described as easy. The trails 
are fatiguing at best and hardly to be recom- 
mended to persons with much tendency to nausea 
when on giddy heights, but seldom indeed is 
there dissent to the proposition that the fatigue 
of a descent is well worth while. For, indeed, 
to appreciate the grandeur and matchless magni- 
tude of these temples and palaces, one must go 
down among them and look upward to them 
from the depths ; to know the awful majesty and 
resistless power of that sullen river he must 
stand on its very bank. Missing such an oppor- 
tunity is not to be thought of. 

One party or more, as the case may be — for 
no guide is given more than ten persons — is 
made up daily for the descent of Bright Angel 
Trail. The trip may terminate at Indian 
Garden, only four miles distant, or one may pro- 

115 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

ceed as much farther, either to a wide plateau 
overlooking the river — a comparatively easy jog 
of two or three hours — or he may lose himself 
in the black labyrinth of ravines, and trusting 
implicitly to the knowledge of the guide, come at 
last to the very brink of the Colorado. 

We are soon enrolled in the first trail party 
to leave the hotel at eight in the morning of the 
following day. It will take eight or nine hours, 
they tell us, to make the return trip to the river. 
We still have the greater part of the afternoon to 
while away — our train was several hours late 
and the trail trip is out of question today — 
and we are urged to join the excursion to Hopi 
Point, where we should see the rarest of sunsets, 
for the day has been cloudless and serene and the 
evening promises equally fine. It is a drive of 
only four miles in an open mountain wagon with 
much beautiful scenery on the way. The road 
winds among tall pines and ever and anon the 
red and purple glory of the canyon walls flashes 
through the openings between the stately trunks. 
We soon find ourselves at our destination, where 
we dismount in order to reach the best possible 
point of view on the rim of the Canyon. 

Not elsewhere on this planet do I hope to 
behold a scene of such overpowering grandeur 
so softened with ethereal beauty as that which 

116 



THE GRAND CANYON 

greets my eyes from Hopi Point. We have 
come at the hour when the wide expanse of the 
western heavens is glowing with lucent gold, 
and a marvelous sunset, fleclced with crimson 
clouds, is flooding the wide level plain to the 
westward with blinding radiance, far too 
splendid for any words of mine. And if the 
sunset lends to the characterless plain such 
unspeakable glory, who may even imagine the 
effect of the golden shafts of light upon the mul- 
titude of towers and spires that fill the vast 
depression before our eyes? It touches them 
with burning gold and flames on the endless 
walls of alabaster on the uttermost margin of 
the abysm; strange lights and shadows lurk in 
the valleys and ravines ; amber, purple, deep blue, 
seem to predominate in turn, though all colors 
are blending and changing momentarily as the 
daylight declines. It is this peculiar evanescence 
that impresses you most when you view the 
Canyon under any condition of cloud or sunshine, 
mist or snow, or of weird moonlight. There is 
always an elusiveness and I doubt not that this 
strange phenomenon baffles the painter when he 
would transfer the scenes to canvas — a task for 
which even the master of them all has confessed 
himself quite inadequate. A thousand times the 
scenes seem to be shifted as we gaze at the 

117 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

titanic panorama in the fading light and as the 
night settles down over the mighty gorge, its 
strangeness deepens and the predominating 
impression of beauty which has reigned in the 
mind of the beholder gives way to a sense of 
awful mystery. 



118 



11 

DOWN BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL 

How different is the scene when the day 
flames out again and all the warmth and color 
reappear in the stupendous deeps of the great 
chasm. We are early astir, for our party is 
scheduled to leave at eight o'clock on the trail 
trip to the river's edge some eight miles from 
the Canyon's rim. Bright Angel Trail, which is 
by far the most popular of the narrow, tortuous 
descents into the Canyon, takes its name from 
the creek which joins the Colorado River at the 
lower terminus of the trail. We find our mules 
saddled and waiting; they are assigned to us, or 
we to them, with reference to their size and our 
avoirdupois. Most of the animals are time-tried 
denizens of the trails — sedate and sure-footed — 
and would probably take you to your destination 
and back without the services of any guide at all. 

Our conductor is a rather breezy young 
westerner, with sombrero and bandana of most 
approved style, and evidently with no mean 

119 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

opinion of himself. He rides a horse, for which 
he evinces all the western ranger's fondness, and 
having been a cavalryman in the Spanish-Ameri- 
can War, he is fully at home in the saddle. 
Strictly speaking, he is captain as well as guide 
of the party, and it is his duty to look after the 
welfare of his charges and see that none of them 
unduly exposes himself. He has a fund of infor- 
mation and a number of stories and incidents 
concerning the Canyon which serve to enliven 
the long mule-back ride. 

We find the Bright Angel descent far more 
strenuous than the Glacier Point trip in the 
Yosemite — more difficult by odds than we antici- 
pated. A series of steep zigzags, often winding 
along the verge of yawning precipices, makes 
one shudder as he thinks of the results of a single 
misstep — but the mules do not make missteps 
and the chapter of accidents to tourists in the 
Canyon is short indeed. The descent begins at 
Bright Angel Inn, a half mile from El Tovar. 
Like all trails to the Colorado, it is more or less 
a natural pathway, having been used for ages by 
the Indians, though in places it has been rendered 
easier and safer by well-directed work. This is 
especially noticeable for the first half mile, where 
the skill of the engineer is plainly evident. The 
canyon walls are almost devoid of vegetation, 

120 




BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL, GRAND CANYON 
From the Original Painting by Thomas Moran, N. A. 



THE GRAND CANYON 

though a few gnarled and stunted pines have 
found foothold and coarse grasses and cacti with 
leaves like stilettos appear at intervals. As we 
descend and are able to view the strangely 
eroded forms from a lower level, the resemblance 
to architectural structures becomes more pro- 
nounced. Yonder rises Shiva Temple, the 
dominating pile of Bright Angel Trail, wonder- 
fully symmetrical in form — an oriental palace of 
gigantic dimensions built of intricately carved 
stone and surmounted by a pinnacled dome of 
light yellow. Truly, it seems as if one might 
enter its awful portals and come into the hall of 
some potentate of giant stature amidst surround- 
ings of barbaric splendor, a fit ruler for the 
enchanted land in which we sojourn today. The 
trail descends rather sharply until it passes the 
red sandstone strata; when it enters "Boulder 
Bed" it becomes comparatively easy and sighs of 
relief from the party are not uncommon. For 
the next mile we wind among huge blocks of 
stone, strangely fantastic in contour and color, 
which at some remote period have tumbled from 
the canyon walls. Here the ground is clothed 
with verdure and, in season, starred with wild 
flowers among which dart the lithe, brightly 
colored lizards and swifts. We can breathe 
easier now and contemplate the marvelous 

121 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

scenery without the anxiety that forced itself 
upon us when we rode along the edge of precipi- 
tous slopes. 

There is a refreshing midway pause at Indian 
Garden, where we may drink and fill our can- 
teens from the clear stream whose waters give 
life to the little garden which has been planted 
by the family living in the cottage near at hand. 
Some years ago a stone structure to be used as 
an inn was begun here, but it was never finished 
and fell into ruin; one would think it would not 
have lacked guests — it would indeed be a rare 
experience to pass the night amidst such sur- 
roundings. 

After a few minutes' rest at this pleasant 
spot, we are again in the saddle, but our party 
divides. Some prefer the trip to Indian Garden 
Plateau, where by an easy route one may indeed 
come to the river bank, but it is a bank some 
thousands of feet above the stream itself. But 
most of us decide in favor of the far more stren- 
uous trail which leads through an interminable 
labyrinth of granite-walled ravines to the very 
margin of the untamable Colorado. The 
rugged walls shut out the view much of the 
time, though through occasional openings there 
are still glimpses of the vast blood-red palaces 
that now tower far above us sharp against the 

122 




A BRIGHT ANGEL TRAIL PARTY-GRAND CANYON 



THE GRAND CANYON 

sky. Our path follows the graveled beds where 
the torrents pour towards the river when heavy 
rains fall ; but the courses are now nearly dry and 
marked by mere trickling streams. At times 
our path seems to end abruptly against a black 
insurmountable wall — but our guide turns into a 
narrow defile that leads on still downward — 
downward. There are places where the path 
clings precariously to the side of a cliff, rising 
hundreds of feet above and dropping as many 
hundreds sheer below us. And worst of all is 
the Devil's Corkscrew — for his satanic majesty 
has almost as many possessions in the Grand 
Canyon as in the Yellowstone; we do not 
hear so much of him in the elysian vale of the 
Yosemite, thank heaven. But the Corkscrew is 
rightly named, whether the devil has aught to do 
with it or not. Our guide calls to us to dis- 
mount. No one is permitted to ride down this 
frightful natural winding stair, which carries us 
almost two hundred feet nearer the level of the 
mysterious river which we are seeking. We 
have left the zone of brilliant colors; far above 
us it coruscates and flames against the turquois 
sky. Our devious path now winds among moun- 
tainous cliffs of igneous granite, black and 
forbidding, a perfect labyrinth where the novice 
might be hopelessly lost. 

123 



TllKKE WONDERLANDS 

At last comes the order to dismount, the 
mules are tethered, and rounding a granite clitY 
we lind ourselves on the shores of the vexed 
torrent which in countless ages has wrought the 
wonderland through which it courses. Its 
waters are turbid and foam-crested and the 
granite precipices resoimd with its sullen roar. 
The opposite shore seems no more than a stone's 
throw away, but the missile hurled by the most 
dextrous of our party falls in luidsireani — in 
such stupendous surroundings one is deceived as 
to the river's w^dth. \\'o gaze at its whirling 
waters with a strange fascination — there is in- 
deed no match for the Colorado among the 
greater rivers of the world. Other great streams 
are the friendly servants of man, affording him 
means of travel and patiently bearing his 
burdens. How different the demon torrent that 
\\Tithes before us — almost inaccessible to man, 
it resists and defies his puny ettorts to subdue 
its somber w^aters. The most intrepid explorers 
alone have ridden its angry waves and they 
traversed its tortuous course only with unparal- 
leled danger and fatigue. Its waters are 
surcharged with sand and are almost as turbid 
as those of the Mad Missouri; there is nowhere 
the cr^'stal and emerald glor>^ of the Yellow- 
stone. It is hemmed in by solid walls of black 

124 




THE INNER GORGE, GRAND CANYON 

From the Original Painting by Thomas Moran, N. A. 



THE GRAND CANYON 

granite and it rushes over a bed of the same 
material so hard that erosion now proceeds but 
slowly, despite the awful force of the torrent. 
Here and there the waters swirl and eddy around 
huge boulders, which in some remote time have 
plunged down from the towering cliffs. 

We hardly need the reminder from our 
guide that the hotel people have provided a 
picnic luncheon for the party — we are fully ready 
for the substantial fare which the lunch boxes 
contain. Water is dipped from the river, and 
despite its somewhat forbidding appearance, it 
proves very drinkable, for the sand settles almost 
instantly. 

In an hour our return trip begins. Our 
mules have patiently awaited us and eagerly 
begin the upward climb, for they are given no 
feed during the trip. But their zeal gradually 
flags under the strenuous work and long before 
the end is reached they are allowed frequent 
pauses for rest and no little urging becomes 
necessary. We dismount both for the Cork- 
screw and Jacob's Ladder, and before we reach 
our destination we are quite as weary as the 
animals themselves. We cast many longing 
glances at the flag floating above the rim, a 
crimson speck against the evening sky, marking 
the goal of our earnest desire — our comfortable 

125 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

inn. But our weariness of the flesh does not 
wholly distract our attention from our sur- 
roundings, which present many new and 
pleasing aspects in the course of our ascent. Our 
guide points out against the face of an almost 
perpendicular wall piles of rude masonry, once 
the abode of prehistoric cliff-dwellers. It was 
probably before the Christian Era that these 
strange beings reared their rude homes in that 
inaccessible spot — a retreat, no doubt, from 
enemies whom they were too weak to meet in 
open combat. Holes were hollowed in the face 
of the cliff and walls of heavy stones were built 
between these dens and the yawning precipice 
beneath. A difficult and devious trail led to the 
dizzy retreat, known probably only to the people 
who occupied these strange homes. No traces 
of human occupation now remain except occa- 
sional flint arrowheads and shards of pottery. 
The upward "trek" seems well-nigh inter- 
minable, though in hours it is no longer than 
the descent. It is with a sigh of relief that we 
tumble from our mounts as best we may and limp 
painfully to the hotel. A warm bath, however, 
and change of raiment work wonders, and over 
the polished silver and white linen of the El 
Tovar one's hardships begin to fade into a host 
of pleasant recollections. 

126 



Ill 

AT THE EL TOVAR 

After dinner everyone responds to the invi- 
tation to witness an Indian dance at the Hopi 
House, which is an exact reproduction of a 
native pueblo, situated a short distance from the 
hotel. Before the performance begins the 
aborigines shrewdly allow the guests plenty of 
time to look about the house and make such pur- 
chases as they may elect from the thousand and 
one articles offered for sale. There are Navajo 
rugs in bright and somber colors, Indian pottery 
and baskets in quaint but often artistic designs, 
furs, native weapons and trinkets, Mexican fili- 
gree work in gold and silver and souvenirs galore 
in great variety and at all prices. There is also 
exhibited a fine collection of articles of native 
manufacture which was the property of Fred 
Harvey and which includes many individual 
pieces — especially in rugs and baskets — of great 
value. In one of the rooms a Hopi woman was 
busily at work weaving a rug at her crude loom, 

127 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

thus affording an example of the slow and labor- 
ious process by which these fabrics are produced. 

Suddenly the weird tattoo of the Indian 
drums signalled that the promised dance was to 
begin. A couple of slovenly bucks shuffled out 
to the center of the floor and began a character- 
istic native dance, accompanying their uncouth 
movements with a series of yelps and groans. 
They were clad in dirty woolen shirts and buck- 
skin trousers, the latter hanging so loosely as to 
appear in constant danger of dropping off. 
However, no such catastrophe happened and the 
end of the dance was the occasion for a collection 
taken by a small aborigine. And this same 
diminutive native proved a star performer him- 
self; though a mite of only two or three years, 
as a dancer he was a far greater hit with the 
onlookers than were his elders, and his efforts 
were greeted with a shower of nickels and dimes. 
The dancers continued their gyrations until the 
contributions finally failed and it was thereupon 
intimated that the evening's entertainment was 
closed. 

Just outside the Hopi House are several 
native dwellings or hogans, as they are usually 
styled, queer semi-spherical structures of adobe 
and stones, about a dozen feet in diameter and 
six or seven in extreme height. A semi-circular 

128 




Z o 



< c 
OS •= 

H .S 



THE GRAND CANYON 

hole through which the occupants crawl serves 
as a doorway. There are no chimneys, the 
smoke finding its way through a small aperture 
in the top. In appearance and construction 
these odd primitive dwellings closely resemble 
the "igloos" of the Esquimaux, except that in 
the former "adobe" takes the place of snow. 

As we return to the hotel we pause to again 
contemplate the mysterious deeps of the weird 
chasm where ghostly forms and dark shadows 
seem to struggle with the fitful moonbeams — 
and behold another phase of its ever-changing 
and indescribable beauty. 

The El Tovar is brilliant with myriads of 
electric lights, for this unique palace in the 
wilderness has every modern improvement and 
convenience. It is a somewhat rambling build- 
ing of huge proportions, constructed of native 
logs and boulders, though the plan is hardly so 
happily conceived or so well carried out as that 
of the Old Faithful Inn in the Yellowstone. 
Perhaps it has less of the genuine atmosphere of 
the wild about it. It is named in honor of 
the old-time Spanish conquistador, Don Pedro 
del Tovar, whose memory is linked with the dis- 
covery of the Grand Canyon by Coronado's 
soldiers in 1540 — in 1540! Strange indeed that 
this remote marvel, so far inland, should have 

129 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

been seen by white men within fifty years after 
the discovery of America! There are few more 
magnificently situated hotels in the world, the 
mighty pines of the Coconino Forest sweeping 
away to the rear and directly in front, in plain 
view from the spacious veranda and from many 
of the rooms, the weird glories of the Canyon. 

And it has the Harvey service, which means 
that its cuisine is unexceptionable, for in the 
Southwest the name Harvey has become synony- 
mous with excellence. The founder of the 
Harvey system of hotels and eating houses is no 
longer living, but his spirit still pervades his 
institutions, and just how exacting that spirit 
was is well illustrated by an incident related 
by a lady who once acted as stenographer 
for Fred Harvey himself. She said it was his 
custom to visit his dining-rooms wearing a 
newly laundered pair of white gloves and to pass 
his hands over the sideboards and tables. Even 
the window-sills and casings underwent similar 
tests and woe to the responsible parties if the 
white gloves showed traces of dust! 

The El Tovar dining-room is of huge pro- 
portions — a rustic hall some forty by ninety feet 
with massive log-trussed ceiling and two capa- 
cious stone fireplaces. If fortunate enough to 
secure a table near one of the large windows the 

130 



THE GRAND CANYON 

guest may regale himself with a panorama of the 
Canyon as well as the appetizing bill-of-fare. 

It is not strange that the Grand Canyon 
country has been the mecca of many artists, and 
it is therefore appropriate that the El Tovar 
should have a picture gallery with many excellent 
paintings of local scenery. In the rotunda 
hangs an original by Mr. Moran, one of his most 
important canvases, and somewhat similar in 
composition to "Mist After Rain," which adorns 
this book. Mr. Moran's name is familiar to the 
hotel people, for he has been a frequent guest, 
though much of his work was done here before 
the day of the El Tovar. He came hither in the 
days of the stagecoach and made journeys, often 
tedious and wearisome, to all the more pictur- 
esque points of the Canyon. His own words 
concerning the great natural wonder which he 
has done so much to bring to the eyes of his 
fellow-countrymen may be fitly given here. 
Following an earnest appeal for "Nationalism in 
Art," in which he shows the opportunities 
afforded the American painter by the scenery of 
the Great West, he continues: 

"On a recent visit to the Grand Canyon of 
Arizona, I was more than ever convinced that 
the future of American art lies in being true to 
our country, in the interpretation of that beau- 

131 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

tiful and glorious scenery with which nature has 
so lavishly endowed our land. 

"My chief desire is to call the attention of 
American landscape painters to the unlimited 
field for the exercise of their talents to be found 
in this enchanting southwestern country; a 
country flooded with color and picturesqueness, 
offering everything to inspire the artist and 
stimulate him to the production of works of 
lasting interest and value. 

**This Grand Canyon of Arizona, and all 
the country surrounding it, offers a new and 
comparatively untrodden field for pictorial inter- 
pretation, and only awaits the men of original 
thoughts and ideas to prove to their countrymen 
that we possess a land of beauty and grandeur 
with which no other can compare. The pastoral 
painter, the painter of picturesque genre, the 
imaginative and dramatic landscapist are here 
offered all that can delight the eye or stir the 
imagination and emotions. 

"With truth and perceptions of a poet, Mr. 
Higgins has described the Canyon as 'An inferno 
swathed in soft celestial fires, unflinchingly real, 
yet spectral as a dream. It is the soul of Michael 
Angelo and of Beethoven.* 

"Its forests of cedar and pine interspersed 
with aspens and dwarfish oak are weird in 

132 



THE GRAND CANYON 

the extreme; its tremendous architecture fills 
one with wonder and admiration, and its color, 
forms and atmosphere are so ravishingly beau- 
tiful that, however well traveled one may be, a 
new world is opened to him when he gazes into 
the Grand Canyon of Arizona." 

It would be strange, indeed, if such a 
stirring appeal should pass unheeded, and as a 
consequence the Canyon region is being increas- 
ingly frequented by painters of note; George 
Innes, Jr., Elliott Daingerfield, Edward Pott- 
hast, DeWitt Parshall, the late G. H. McCord, 
and other distinguished representatives of Amer- 
ican art have been among the visitors of late 
years. Perhaps from among these pilgrims of 
brush and palette may come forth a fit successor 
to the master who first brought to the eyes of the 
world the marvels of color and form that exist 
in this enchanted land. 

We find ourselves loath to leave this region 
of beauty and wonder — we know that at best we 
have had but a passing glimpse of its glory; a 
sojourn of many months would not suffice to 
visit the accessible points of interest or to witness 
all of the innumerable phases of beauty conse- 
quent upon the mutations of the seasons and the 
weather. Much of the grandest scenery of the 

133 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

region is some distance from El Tovar. Of the 
Virgin River, more than a hundred miles to the 
southwest, Thomas Moran writes: 

"The Canyon of the Rio Virgin is without 
doubt the grandest and most beautiful of all the 
tributary canyons of the Colorado River. In 
the walls of this canyon are found vast amphi- 
theatres; titanic pinnacles rise from its depth, 
exquisitely storm-carved and painted by nature 
in endless variety of colors." And this is only 
one of many localities well worth the tourist's 
while, but only to be reached by slow methods 
of transportation requiring time and patience 
and often entailing not a little fatigue and incon- 
venience. As a member of a congenial party, 
with guides and camping outfit, one would no 
doubt secure the ideal method by which to 
explore the less frequented spots of the canyon 
region. Such excursions may be arranged for at 
El Tovar, since it would hardly be practicable for 
the tourist to supply his own equipment. 



134 



IV 

THE DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 
OF THE CANYON 

The history of the connection of civilized 
man with the Grand Canyon is a strange one and 
reads like the pages of some fanciful romance. 
As intimated previously, the first white men saw 
the Canyon in 1540, when Francisco Vasquez de 
Coronado and his band of treasure-seeking 
Spaniards stumbled upon it in their search for 
the "Seven Cities of Cibola." Such was the high 
sounding title by which they designated a half 
dozen wretched Zuni villages which rumor had 
magnified into cities of great wealth and magnifi- 
cence, where the gold-crazed Spaniards hoped 
to repeat the scenes of plunder and rapine 
enacted by Cortez in Mexico. The great chasm, 
with its mysterious river, interposed an impass- 
able barrier in their path and they turned back- 
ward without having been able to find any 
descent leading to the shores of the stream. 
Their tales of the awe-inspiring spectacle which 

135 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

they had beheld were received incredulously and 
gradually faded into dim tradition. It was not 
until 1776 that mention is again made of the 
Canyon, when a Spanish priest in course of his 
wanderings came upon it and found a practicable 
crossing at a point still known as "Vado de los 
Padres." In the next eighty years an occasional 
visit is chronicled, but it was not until 1857 that 
an official expedition under Lieutenant Ives was 
despatched to the Canyon. The establishment of 
military forts in New Mexico and Utah made it 
desirable to use the Colorado as a waterway, and 
it was with this object that the explorers began 
their voyage at the river's mouth. They had a 
side-wheel steamer which could ascend no 
farther than the mouth of the Virgin River, 
where it became clear that the wild waters of 
the Colorado could never be converted into an 
avenue for transportation or commerce. 

These meager annals constitute the history 
of the explorations of the Colorado up to forty 
or fifty years ago. In 1869 Major John Wesley 
Powell with a party of ten devoted followers 
undertook to traverse the entire length of the 
Canyon in four rowboats. In this he was en- 
tirely successful, covering the distance of about 
two hundred and seventeen miles from Green 
River to the mouth of the Rio Virgin in thirty 

136 



THE GRAND CANYON 

days. The story of this voyage reads like a 
romance; it seems almost impossible that such a 
small party should have been able to accomplish 
the journey in the frail wooden boats. The 
river was an absolutely unknown quantity; the 
bold explorers were in constant danger of 
destruction, not knowing what moment the 
boats might plunge over a cataract or be dashed 
to pieces in some raging rapid. The undertak- 
ing met with words of discouragement on all 
sides from those who best knew the Colorado; 
the Indians and white trappers and hunters most 
familiar with the Canyon insisted that there 
were dozens of rapids where no boat could 
possibly live. It was widely believed that in 
many places the river disappeared wholly in 
tunnels beneath the gigantic cliffs that every- 
where overhang it. Nothing daunted, however, 
the intrepid explorers set about their appalling 
task. Some of the rapids could not be ridden by 
the boats and were only passed by the laborious 
process of "portage" — carrying the boats around 
the rapid or fall. In all there are about six 
hundred rapids in the portion of the Colorado 
covered by Powell's voyage. So arduous was 
the trip that three members of the party became 
dismayed and withdrew from the expedition, 
despite the protest of their comrades, only by 

137 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

some strange decree of fate to lose their lives at 
the hands of hostile Indians, while their com- 
panions completed the voyage unscathed. 

The first trip being largely of an experi- 
mental nature — to prove that the thing could be 
done — Powell arranged the next year for a 
second expedition to take more accurate obser- 
vations and surveys. He piloted a party of 
eleven men in four especially constructed row- 
boats embodying ideas suggested by his 
experience on the previous voyage. These boats 
were of wood, light in construction and so built 
as to be unsinkable even if capsized. Early in 
the voyage one of the boats was destroyed in 
passing a rapid, but the remaining three com- 
pleted the trip. More time was consumed in this 
voyage than in the former, the party exploring 
many of the tributary canyons and taking accu- 
rate observations on the topography of the 
region. Powell, who possessed the soul of a 
poet as well as the mind of a man of science, has 
written much of the grandeur and beauty of the 
scenery which he witnessed on this voyage, and 
to this day some of his descriptions remain the 
best that have been penned. Accompanying him 
was a young army officer, Capt. Fred S. Dellen- 
baugh, who has since written an exhaustive 
book fitly styled, "The Romance of the Colorado 

138 



THE GRAND CANYON 

River" — and indeed it is a romance more thrill- 
ing than many of the imagination. Dellenbaugh 
was an artist as well as author and made many 
paintings and sketches of the scenery. The 
party also took a large number of photographs, 
which averaged remarkably good considering 
that neither the dry plate nor film had yet come 
into use and that the photographic apparatus 
was very heavy and unwieldy. 

Powell made a number of trips to various 
sections of the Canyon region during the ten 
years following his successful voyages down the 
river, and added much to our geographical 
knowledge of the Colorado and its tributaries. 
He says in one of his works, "Since my first trip 
in boats many others have essayed to follow me, 
and year by year such expeditions have met with 
disaster; some hardy adventurers are buried on 
the banks of the Green and the graves of others 
are scattered at intervals along the course of the 
Colorado." 

One of the most noted of these expeditions 
was that of 1889, in which Mr. F. M. Brown lost 
his life. He was the president of a railroad 
corporation which was organized with the idea 
of building a road through the Canyon. It was 
proposed to construct this road from Grand 
Junction, Colorado, following the course of the 

139 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

Colorado River through the Canyon to the Gulf 
of California, a distance of about twelve hundred 
miles. It was thought that such a road would 
be profitable in supplying the Pacific Coast with 
coal, but the discovery of an abundant supply of 
that mineral in the Puget Sound region did away 
with the chief motive for the proposed enterprise. 
Since the country along the line would con- 
tribute very little support, the principal source 
of revenue would have to come from tourist 
travel, which at present would be manifestly 
insufficient to make such a costly undertaking 
profitable. In passing through the Canyon the 
road would have to be at least one hundred feet 
above low water to avoid the floods which come 
very suddenly from cloudbursts in this region, 
and much of the way the track would have to 
be cut in the sides of almost perpendicular cliffs. 
The idea of building the road was not abandoned, 
however, upon the death of the originator of the 
project, which was styled "The Denver, Colo- 
rado Canyon and Pacific Railway Company." 
A year later a well-equipped party of engineers 
under Lieutenant R. B. Stanton made the voyage 
down the river and completed the survey. The 
start was made on the 10th of December and the 
Gulf of California reached the following April. 
From his own words one may best gain an idea 

140 



THE GRAND CANYON 

of the marvelous scenery and exciting adventure 
of this historic trip: 

"It has been the fortune of but few to travel 
along the bottom of the great chasm for a whole 
winter, while around you bloom the sweet wild 
flowers and southern birds sing on almost every 
bush — and at the same time far above, among 
the upper cliffs, rage and roar like demons in the 
air the grandest and most terrific storms of 
wind and snow and sleet that I have ever 
witnessed, even above the clouds among the 
summit peaks of the Rocky Mountains. 

"To be imprisoned between the great tow- 
ering walls, the whole upper countrv covered with 
its winter mantle of inhospitable snow, which 
hanging down hundreds of feet over the rim and 
in the side gorges gives warning that the only 
way of escape is over the hundreds of fearful 
rapids, falls and cataracts below, and through 
the only open gate at the extreme western end; 
to dash into and over the huge waves at the head 
of more than a hundred rapids with no knowl- 
edge that we could come out alive at the lower 
end; to toil, to rest, to eat, to sleep for weeks and 
for months beside the everlasting roar of that 
raging torrent — was an experience that even now 
brings up memories, feelings and impressions 
that would require volumes to relate. 

141 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

"On our second expedition, with our new 
boats, we ran nearly all of the rapids and 
portaged but few; over many of them our boats 
dashed and jumped at the rate of fifteen to 
thirty miles per hour. To stand in the bow of 
one of these boats as she dashes through a great 
rapid with first the bow and then the stern 
jumping into the air is an excitement the fasci- 
nation of which can only be understood through 
experience. 

"Starting into the head of one rapid the 
speed given to the boat by the oarsmen to gain 
steerageway carried us over the first and second 
smooth waves so fast that as the boat rose to the 
top of the last it had not time to turn down, but 
went on, up and up, and shot clean out into the 
air, jumping over to and dropping with a tre- 
mendous crash upon the third wave. Again, 
while going over another fall our boat, after 
passing the crest of the second wave and turning 
down, did not rise upon the third wave at all but 
dove clearly under it, filling completely with 
water, but thanks to its ten air-tight compart- 
ments it in an instant rose to the surface and 
went safely through the whole rapid. 

"In the last section are some of the worst 
and most powerful rapids, No. 465 being per- 
haps the worst on the whole river. It is com- 

142 



THE GRAND CANYON 

posed of three falls, in all, a drop of thirty feet. 
The current, turned from one side by large 
bowlders, dashes, after passing over the first fall, 
against the left cliff, just at the head of the 
second fall, and is thrown back with awful force, 
and as it meets the current from the right curls 
in angry waves fifteen to twenty feet high, first 
from one side and then from another. From this 
the whole current is thrown against the right 
wall as it curves out into the stream just at the 
head of the third fall." (This is the rapid at 
which Major Powell's three men left him.) 

"It took but a few moments of examination 
to see that there was no way to get our boats or 
supplies around this rapid. It must be run. 
There was no hesitation. Every man went back 
to the boats and jumped in. They were soon 
ready for the plunge. 

"In a moment we were at the head of the 
first fall and over or through a half dozen huge 
waves and approaching the second fall. As I 
looked down into that pit of fury I wondered if 
it were possible for our boats to go through it 
and come out whole. I had no time for a second 
thought. We were in the midst of the breakers. 
They lashed at first one side and then the other, 
breaking far above our heads and half filled our 
boat. For a second we were blinded by the 

143 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

dashing muddy water. In another second we 
were through and out and right side up. I 
turned to see if the men were safe. They were 
all in their places; but our boats, though right 
side up, had been turned quartering with the 
current, and we were being carried with fearful 
force toward the right cliff. Every instant I 
expected to be dashed against the cliff ahead, 
where the whole current of water was piled up 
in one boiling mass against the solid granite; but 
just as I felt the last moment had come, our 
sturdy Scotch helmsman, Hislop, gave the boat 
a sudden turn, and assisted by the rebounding 
waves we went by the cliff and I shouted to the 
men: 'That's good! That's good! We are past.' 
But the words were hardly out of my mouth 
when as we rounded the point of the third fall 
our boat, picked up bodily by a powerful side 
wave, was dashed fully ten feet to the right and 
it crashed into a rock which projected from the 
shore, and stopped. We were all thrown for- 
ward. The boat filled with water, sank upon 
the rock and stuck fast. Wave after wave in 
quick succession rolled over us. I tried to 
straighten myself up, when a great wave struck 
me in the back and I was clear out of the boat 
into a whirlpool below the rocks. The force of 
the blow knocked me insensible for a moment. 

144 



THE GRAND CANYON 

But as I was drawn down the water closed 
around my head and my consciousness returned, 
and as I was carried by that whirlpool down, 
down, down, I wondered if I should ever reach 
the bottom of the river. The time seemed an 
age. The river seemed bottomless. In a few 
moments I was caught as by two forces — one 
around my legs and another around my back — 
and twisting in opposite directions, they sent me 
whirling away and I shot to the surface some 
fifty feet down the rapids from where I went in. 
I caught my breath just in time to be carried 
under the next great wave, coming out again in 
a lighter wave at the lower end of the rapids. 
Thanks to my cork jacket I floated high above 
the water, but was carried along the swiftest 
part of the current for near a half mile." 

Quite enough to indicate the strenuous, 
dangerous character of the voyage — but it was 
not without reward. What an experience it 
was to pass the entire length of that stupendous 
gorge and to view its marvelous panoramas of 
peaks and palaces under all conditions of weather 
and at all hours of the day and night — to see the 
sunrise flaming upon the white walls that 
stretch along the rim, to see the twilight settle 
down, weird and ghostly over the gigantic 
temples, to see the moonlight shed its silver 

145 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

radiance over the enchanting scenes — what 
grander experience could the human soul enjoy? 
But the railroad remains an unfulfilled pro- 
ject — though Lieutenant Stanton expresses the 
belief that it will one day become a reality. 
Then and then only may the average man and 
woman have the opportunity of knowing some- 
thing of the fantastic beauty that greeted the 
venturesome explorers in their hazardous voy- 
ages down the wild river. 



146 



V 
OTHER WONDERS OF THE CANYON REGION 

One could not close even a cursory descrip- 
tion of the Grand Canyon without some refer- 
ence to the many other strange phenomena that 
exist in this enchanted region. Among these 
none are more famous than the petrified forests 
of Arizona, three of which are to be found in the 
vicinity of Flagstaff. These may be reached 
from Adamana Station — in fact, the forests are 
Adamana's reason for being. The first forest is 
about six miles distant from the station and the 
journey may be made in a leisurely fashion in 
three or four hours, allowing time for inspec- 
tion of the Aztec ruins and hieroglyphics which 
are passed en route. In this forest is the famous 
natural log bridge, a huge trunk of jasper and 
agate spanning a chasm sixty feet in width, 
above a clear tree-fringed pool. The second for- 
est, covering about two thousand acres, is two 
and one-half miles due south of the first. Here 
are many fine trees quite intact, among them the 

147 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

famous "Twin Sisters." The third forest, which 
is of far greater extent than the others, lies about 
thirteen miles southwest of Adamana. Here 
may be found the largest specimens of petrified 
trees in existence, some of them being seven to 
nine feet in diameter and more than two hun- 
dred feet in length. The colorings are striking 
indeed, every tint of the rainbow glowing in the 
scattered, broken limbs and trunks, while other 
fragments are clear as crystal. One may easily 
understand as he views these coruscating blocks 
of stone, why this forest is locally known as the 
"Crystal" and "Rainbow" Forest. Besides these 
is the Blue Forest, seven miles east of Adamana, 
which is noted for the beautiful blue color tones 
of the petrified trunks. This was but recently 
discovered by John Muir. The North Sigillaria 
Forest, in the same vicinity, is peculiar in that 
many of the tree trunks are still standing, giv- 
ing a remarkably picturesque effect. 

Geologists have advanced many theories to 
account for these remarkable phenomena, but all 
are agreed that at some remote period the great 
forests growing in this region were inundated, 
perhaps by the sea. It must have been millions 
of years ago, for it is estimated that some ten 
thousand feet of rock was deposited over the 
trees and this subsequently was eroded clear 

148 



THE GRAND CANYON 

away, bringing the long-buried monarchs of the 
forest again to the light of day. This process 
was well described by Mr. C. A. Higgins, who 
wrote : 

"This region for hundreds of square miles 
was once sunk so low the ocean overflowed it; 
then upheaved so high the brine could find no 
footing. Again a partial depression made it a 
vast repository of rivers that drained the higher 
levels, which in time was expelled by a further 
upheaval. During the periods of subsidence 
the incoming waters deposited sand and silt, 
which time hardened to rock. But in periods of 
upheaval the process was reversed and the out- 
going waters gnawed the mass and labored con- 
stantly to bear it away. And when these 
ancient logs were uncovered, and, like so many 
Van Winkles, they awoke — but from a sleep 
many thousand times longer — to the sight of a 
world that had forgotten them, lo! the sybaritic 
chemistry of nature had transformed them every 
one into chalcedony, topaz, onyx, carnelian, 
agate and amethyst." 

General attention was first attracted to 
these forests by the exhibitions at the Chicago 
World's Fair of polished slabs and huge trunks 
of agatized trees and of many small articles made 
from this petrified wood. To most beholders it 

149 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

was a distinct revelation; few had ever heard of 
this strange natural phenomenon and many- 
were inclined to be rather incredulous. Since 
then, however, the forests have been visited by 
a yearly increasing number of tourists, and the 
publication of numerous magazine articles and 
books have made them fairly familiar to nearly 
everyone. But even yet the number of Ameri- 
cans who actually see these dead and buried 
forests is comparatively small indeed; the more 
to be regretted, for aside from its weird beauty, 
a strange human interest attaches to these mas- 
sive trunks transmuted into stone eons ago. 
What race of men knew the living forest; what 
strange birds flitted among its swaying 
branches; what huge monsters browsed and 
battled in its shade; what cataclysm finally 
brought low these monarchs — stately pine and 
giant oak? Here indeed is splendid scope for 
the imagination. Here is antiquity that makes 
Egypt and Babylon seem as yesterday. Here 
the student, the philosopher, and the poet may 
each find much to instruct and inspire. 

Within a radius of eight miles from Flag- 
staff may be found the most important ruins of 
the habitations of the prehistoric clifif-dwellers. 
These have the greatest attraction for the 
archeologist, but the casual tourist is also 

150 



THE GRAND CANYON 

interested in seeing these strange homes of a race 
whose antiquity probably antedates that of any 
other of which we have relics in America. A 
well-informed writer gives the following inter- 
esting data concerning these poor remains of a 
long-forgotten people : 

"On the southeast, Walnut Canyon breaks 
the plateau for a distance of several miles, its 
walls deeply eroded in horizontal lines. In these 
recesses, floored and roofed by the more endur- 
ing strata, the cliff-dwellings are found in great 
number, walled up on the front and sides with 
rock fragments and cement, and partitioned into 
compartments. Some have fallen into decay, 
only portions of their walls remaining, and but 
a narrow shelf of the once broad floor of solid 
rock left to evidence their extreme antiquity. 
Others are almost wholly intact, having stub- 
bornly resisted the weathering of time. Noth- 
ing but fragments of pottery now remain of the 
many quaint implements and trinkets that char- 
acterized these dwellings at the time of their 
discovery. 

"Fixed like swallows' nests upon the face 
of a precipice, approachable from above or be- 
low only by deliberate and cautious climbing, 
these dwellings have the appearance of fortified 
retreats rather than habitual abodes. That there 

151 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

was a time, in the remote past, when warhke 
peoples of mysterious origin passed southward 
over this plateau, is generally credited. And 
the existence of the cliff-dwellings is ascribed to 
the exigencies of that dark period when the in- 
habitants of the plateau, unable to cope with the 
superior energy, intelligence and numbers of the 
descending hordes, devised these unassailable 
retreats. All their quaintness and antiquity 
cannot conceal the deep pathos of their being, 
for tragedy is written all over these poor hovels 
hung between earth and sky. Their builders 
hold no smallest niche in recorded history. 
Their aspirations, their struggles and their fate 
are all unwritten, save in these crumbling stones, 
which are their sole monument and meager 
epitaph. Here once they dwelt. They left no 
other print on time. 

"At an equal distance to the north of Flag- 
staff, among the cinder-buried cones, is one 
whose summit commands a wide-sweeping view 
of the plain. Upon its apex, in the innumerable 
spout-holes that were the outlet of ancient erup- 
tions, are the cave-dwellings, around many of 
which rude stone walls still stand. The story 
of these habitations is likewise wholly conject- 
ural. They may have been contemporary with 
the cliflF-dwellings. That they were long inhab- 

152 



THE GRAND CANYON 

ited is clearly apparent. Fragments of shattered 
pottery lie on every hand." 

Meteorite Mountain is another natural 
phenomenon of the region of great interest to 
the man of science and the layman alike. Here, 
it is believed, a meteor — almost a small world in 
dimensions — once collided with Mother Earth. 
The theories of a geologist who recently made 
a careful study of this remarkable craterlike hill- 
ock are of curious interest. He writes: 

"The mountain is about two hundred feet 
high and there are a few stunted pines about its 
forbidding-looking slopes. Going to the top of 
this mountain, over huge masses of strange- 
looking rock, one will find a great depression, 
generally called the crater, though there is no 
evidence of its volcanic formation. This crater 
is a huge bowl one mile across and six hundred 
feet deep. The winds of the desert have blown 
much sand into the crater, evidently covering 
the bottom of the depression to a depth of many 
feet. There is a level space of about forty acres 
in the bottom of the crater. 

"When the gigantic meteor fell hissing into 
the earth, if it ever did so, the concussion must 
have been terrific. And in this connection it is 
interesting to note that the Indians nearby have 
a legend about a huge star falling out of the 

153 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

heavens and dazzling the tribe with its bright- 
ness. Then there was a great shock and sudden 
darkness, and ever since then the Indians have 
regarded Meteorite Mountain with awe. Some 
idea of the action of the meteorite can be 
obtained by throwing a stone into the mud. 
When the meteorite buried itself far into the 
earth the sides were heaved up, leaving a rim- 
like circle about the depression. As the meteor- 
ite sank into the earth it must have crushed 
layers of red sandstone and limestone. It is 
believed that the white sand found in the crater 
and on the sides of the mountain is from the 
sandstone pulverized by the meteor in its de- 
scent. This sand was blown skyward and after- 
ward settled down on the mountain, covering it 
thickly. No sand like it is to be found near the 
mountain. 

"Men searching the ground surrounding 
the mountain for a distance of several miles find 
small meteorites. Several qf these weigh as 
much as one thousand pounds, and others weigh 
only a fraction of an ounce. The largest pieces 
were found farthest from the mountain. These 
meteorites have been proved to be practically 
non-magnetic. This may explain why the im- 
mense body of iron in the buried meteor has not 
shown any magnetic properties. Needles taken 

154 



THE GRAND CANYON 

to the mountain have not shown the presence of 
any great magnetic attraction, and this fact 
puzzled scientists until it was ascertained that 
the fragments found near the mountain did not 
possess magnetism. 

"Another interesting discovery is the pres- 
ence of what is called 'iron shale' near the 
mountain. These are fragments of burned or 
'dead' iron. They might have been broken from 
the meteorite at the time of the terrific impact, 
or they might have been snapped from the lar- 
ger body owing! to a sudden cooling process. 
Inasmuch as the Canyon Diablo country was at 
one time an immense inland sea, another interest- 
ing theory has been brought forth — that the 
meteor fell into this sea, and that the great num- 
ber of splinters of iron in the neighborhood were 
caused by the sudden cooling of the molten mass. 
It has been discovered that these small meteor- 
ites contain diamonds." 

Canyon Diablo, referred to by this writer, is 
some seven miles distant from Meteorite Moun- 
tain. "It is a profound gash in the plateau some 
two hundred and fifty feet deep and many miles 
long. It has the appearance of a volcanic rent in 
the earth's crust, wedge-shaped and terraced in 
bare dun rock down to the thread of a stream 
that trickles through the notch. It is one of 

155 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

those inconsequent things which Arizona is fond 
of displaying. For many miles you are bowled 
over a perfectly level plain, and the train crosses 
the chasm by a spider-web bridge two hundred 
and twenty-five feet high and six hundred feet 
long, and then speeds again over the self-same 
placid expanse. In the darkness of night one 
might unexpectedly step off into its void, it is 
so entirely unlooked for." 

The natives of this region, their villages, 
customs, superstitions, traditions and handiwork 
have much of curious interest to the average 
tourist, though owing to the time required and 
rather poor accommodations a comparatively 
small number visit the Indian Reservations. 
Some of the towns are on the Santa Fe line — 
Laguna, for instance, a typical pueblo of about 
one thousand inhabitants, is plainly to be seen 
from the train. The natives congreg:ate at the 
station, offering baskets and brightly colored 
pottery to the souvenir-seeking" tourist. These 
articles are the staple manufactures of Laguna, 
and Mr. Moran's picture herewith shows a group 
of Indians engaged in burning pottery — the 
village in the background. The whole effect is 
strangely oriental, the white-walled town seem- 
ing more suggestive of Palestine than of the 
western American wilds. 

156 



THE GRAND CANYON 

Of the aborigines in the immediate vicinity 
of the Grand Canyon, the Mokis are most numer- 
ous and interesting. It was the "Seven Cities" of 
this tribe that the early Spanish conquistadors 
were seeking when they stumbled upon the 
Colorado River. There are still seven villages 
in existence, though they are not identical with 
the Seven Cities of Cibola, whose site is now 
believed to be Zuni, near the New Mexican 
border. The Mokis among themselves are known 
as the Hopi or peaceful people, and their present 
appellation, which signifies "the Dead," recalls 
the time when the tribe was nearly wiped out by 
the ravages of smallpox. The tribe offers 
peculiar attraction to students of primitive com- 
munities and pagan ceremonies as well as to the 
artist seeking new and strange material. It is 
only more recently that the ordinary tourist has 
begun to visit the villages, especially during the 
period of religious festivities. Of these the 
Moki snake dance has become world-famous. 
This is a ceremonial prayer for rain, the snakes 
liberated after the dance being supposed to carry 
the petition to the gods of the under world who 
in Moki theology have charge of the weather. 
During the dance hundreds of reptiles, many of 
them the deadly desert rattlesnakes, are fear- 
lessly handled by the performers. To the 

157 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

onlooker it seems impossible that the dancers 
can escape deadly wounds, but no instance of 
such injury is known. The opinion of scientific 
observers is that the Indians avoid danger by 
their extreme dexterity in handling the reptiles, 
which amounts almost to sleight-of-hand. It is 
also claimed that the priests possess an antidote 
for snake bite, but they are said to be extremely 
reticent on this subject. Another ceremony 
which has the same object as the snake dance — 
bringing of rain — is the flute dance, said to be a 
really poetic conception, with picturesque cos- 
tume and ritual, and full of impressive beauty. 
Visitors are apparently welcome at these strange 
ceremonies and no attempt is made to turn them 
into money-making schemes, as might easily be 
done were the Indians so inclined. 

The Moki pueblos are perched on the sum- 
mits of lofty mesas — a defensive measure which 
in early days rendered them quite inaccessible 
to their enemies, though easier paths have been 
constructed in recent times. No doubt the in- 
stincts of the old cliff-dweller still linger in the 
Moki — for he tenaciously clings to the old-time 
practice of building his villages in high localities. 
The women from long usage seem to think it 
little hardship to toil up the steep trails with 
water from the spring below and the men return- 

158 



THE GRAND CANYON 

ing from their fields after the day's work take 
the long climb as a matter of course. The Mokis 
are industrious and thrifty, orderly, and not 
without a certain sense of humor. They hospi- 
tably receive all respectful visitors who may 
come at any time, though of course the season 
of the strange ceremonies we have described 
attracts the greatest number. The Santa Fe 
Railway has published a very interesting book 
on these Indians and their customs, written by 
Prof. George A. Dorsey of the Field Columbian 
Museum, who has been a close student of the 
primitive tribes of the Southwest. Another very 
excellent work is "North Americans of Yester- 
day" by Mr. F. S. Dellenbaugh, whose book on 
the Colorado River we have already referred to. 

In enumerating the marvels of the Grand 
Canyon region, one must not forget the San 
Francisco Mountains, whose snow-capped peaks 
rise some six thousand feet above Flagstaff, or 
thirteen thousand feet above the sea level. The 
summit of Humphrey's Peak may be reached by 
a ten-mile horseback ride — much of the way 
through a park of magnificent pines. The 
gradient is easy and many splendid vistas break 
on one's vision in course of the ascent. 

The view from Humphrey's Peak is cele- 
brated as one of the noblest on earth. It covers 

159 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

a territory, distinctly recognizable, of no less 
than thirty thousand square miles — an area near 
the average of that of the States of the Union. 
And out beyond this, beyond the definite circle 
of vision, lie leagues of soft shadowy contours 
of hills and mountains. Due north the eye 
catches a warm glow of color, the farther wall 
of the Grand Canyon at Bright Angel Amphi- 
theatre, fifty miles away, and above this Kaibab 
Plateau and Buckskin Mountains, some forty 
miles farther. Two hundred miles to the right 
rise the Navajo Mountains near the Colorado 
state line. To the northeast, spread out like a 
brightly-colored canvas, lies the Painted Desert, 
glowing with every hue of the rainbow, and 
beyond this the Navajo Reservation. Still 
farther, surprisingly distinct through the crys- 
tal-clear desert air, are the Moki villages, 
perched on the beetling crags. Eastward a 
broad desert plateau sweeps away to the Navajo 
Springs, one hundred and thirty miles distant, 
and just south of this rise the ghostly forms of 
the White Mountains. To the south lies Mogol- 
lon Plateau, starred with a dozen glittering 
lakes — so unlooked for in this arid land that one 
thinks involuntarily of the mirage — while out 
beyond these the dim blue forms of the Four 
Peaks and Superstition Mountains, one hundred 

160 



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MAP OF 
THE GKAND CANYON OF ARIZONA 



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THE GRAND CANYON 

and sixty miles distant, are silhouetted against 
the horizon. The Bradshaw Mountains are one 
hundred and forty miles to the southwest; 
Granite, near Prescott, one hundred miles, and 
Juniper Range, one hundred and fifty miles. 
Westward, sweeping over arid plains, vision is 
supposed to terminate near the California 
boundary. To the northwest, beyond the Colo- 
rado River, east of the Nevada line, are the 
Hurricane Mountains, so distant that they 
shrink to purple hillocks. Near at hand one 
sees the Coconino Forest; on the east the little 
Colorado, traceable by its fringe of cottonwoods ; 
beds of black lava. Sunset and Peachblow 
Craters — dark, cinder-capped cones; Oak Creek 
Canyon and the Jerome Smelter Works a little 
to the southwest. Just beneath one's eye lies 
the picturesque, clean-looking town of Flagstaff, 
while near at hand rise the neighboring moun- 
tains, Bill Williams, Sitgreaves, Kendrick's and 
the over-mastering bulk of San Francisco Peak. 
The round trip to the Peak is generally 
accomplished in a day, but one may arrange to 
pass the night upon the summit if determined 
in advance — a plan that affords the opportunity 
to witness the glories of sunset and sunrise from 
this sublime vantage point. 



161 



Other Wonders of the 
American West 

I am well aware that in these monographs 

concerning the Yellowstone, the Yosemite and 
the Grand Canyon I have given by no means an 
exhaustive catalogue of the wonders of the great 
American West. To go into detail in describing 
the marvels of the vast section of our country of 
which the Rocky Mountains form the eastern 
boundary would require many volumes even if 
the story were told only cursorily. In Colorado 
alone there is a world of beauty and grandeur. 
Pikes Peak — the American Rigi; the Garden of 
the Gods — that wonderland of wind-worn stones 
which take a thousand fantastic forms; the 
Mountain of the Holy Cross, with its solemn 
emblem graven in the eternal snows; the Royal 
Gorge, the Tolte Gorge, Black Canyon and 
Grand River Canyon, with walls rising two 
thousand feet almost sheer, and numberless 
other natural phenomena not less interesting 

162 



Oil- ^^^ 

can West 

i am weii aware mai m mese monographs 
concerning the Yellowstone, the Yosemite and 
the Grand Canyon I have given by no means an 
exhaustive catalogue of the v^onders of the great 
J^. Fo go into detail in describing 

the i.^^x ' a of our country of 

which thx, ^ form the eastern 

boundary Vv ^^ volumes even if 

the story were toL In Colorado 

alone there is a world oi be ^d grandeur, 

' ■ ~ Peak— tb •• - - ^j^^^ Garden of 

ods — thai . . - f'^worn stones 

hi a take a thousand fa. forms; tht 

itain of the Holy Cross, with its solemn 

m graven in the eternal snows; the Royal 

:'>;ge, the Tolte;!" Gorge, Black Canyon and 

Crprid River Canyon, with walls rising tw 

and feet almost sheer, and numberk; , 

natural phenomena not less interesting 

162 




TOLTE GORGE, COLORADO 

From the Original Painting by Thomas Moran, N. A. 



OTHER WONDERS 

may well engage the attention of the tourist. 

And who by mere words can convey any 
hint of the charm of the land of flowers and sun- 
shine, California, toward which our longings 
turn almost whether we will or no and where — 
some time — we hope to dwell ourselves? What 
save our senses can bring any true realization 
of the languorous beauty and awe-inspiring 
majesty of the limitless ocean, whose blue waters 
ripple over golden beaches or sparkle under 
towering cliffs along all the thousand miles of 
sinuous coast that marks our western boundary? 

As for myself, I can find no words to 
describe the mingled feelings that the sight of 
the Pacific Ocean never fails to arouse in me. 
Indeed, one may say that he can see but a little 
of the ocean at one time, and so far as our limited 
vision goes, the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, the 
Mexican Gulf or the Pacific have no distinguish- 
ing marks. And yet, what a different sensation 
one experiences when his eyes first rest upon the 
"Lord of Waters," whose blue, foam-crested 
waves wash our western coast. Perhaps it is 
due to the ill-defined conception that pervades 
the soul of the vastness of the Pacific. Eighty 
millions of square miles — nearly half the surface 
of the globe — is covered by this illimitable, fath- 
omless sea, which rolls in solemn majesty from 

163 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

continent to continent and almost from pole to 
pole. If one knew nothing of all this, the Pacific 
might excite in him feelings no different from 
those aroused when gazing upon any other body 
of water extending beyond his ken; but who can 
behold the blue expanse of ocean that lies beyond 
the Golden Gate, and feel no thrill from the awe- 
inspiring sense of inconceivable vastness? 

The Sunset State is indeed an empire of it- 
self, a wide domain of fruitful vales, of deadly 
deserts, of snow-clad peaks, of titanic forests, 
with pretty villages, great cities and thousands 
of pleasant resorts that fitly make it a nation's 
playground as well as a home for its own favored 
people. Long Beach, Santa Barbara, Santa 
Catalina, Riverside, Pasadena, and a score of 
other seaside and inland resort towns are 
famous, but to my mind the queen of them all is 
Monterey, with its never-to-be-forgotten Hotel 
Del Monte. Here indeed is the culmination of 
all the glorious color and languorous delights of 
the Golden State, a spot that may match Capri 
or Sorrento in their happiest moods. The lovely 
little bay, the beetling cliffs that overhang the 
deep blue waters, the great sprawling live oaks, 
the never-ending riot of roses, and all the odor- 
ous and beautiful California flowers, are only a 
few of many things that charm the fortunate 

164 




i% 



< K 



2 H 

, o 

— M 



OTHER WONDERS 

sojourner — doubly fortunate if he be domiciled 
at the Del Monte, which that experienced trav- 
eler, Dr. Muirhead, author of Baedeker's Guides 
for Great Britain and the United States, declares 
the best hotel on the American continent. By 
the "best," he no doubt meant the most com- 
fortable and satisfactory, as well as the most de- 
lightfully situated, for it seems to me that 
these words best describe the service and sur- 
roundings of the Del Monte. Its gardens are a 
marvel even in California, the land of flowers — 
"a continual feast of color, solid acres of roses, 
violets, calla lilies, heliotrope, narcissus, tulips 
and crocuses, and one part, known as 'Arizona,' 
contains a wonderful collection of cacti." The 
grounds of the Del Monte reminded Dr. Muir- 
head of some of the splendid parks of the Eng- 
lish gentry, save that even England is no match 
for California in flowers. I refer to the Del 
Monte at this length since it is to some extent 
typical of many of the excellent hostelries of the 
coast, though my recollection is that there are 
but few that match it in the matter of moderate 
charges, excellence considered. 

Aside from the charm of the surroundings 
at Monterey there are few places in California 
that can boast of greater historic interest. Here 
was the capital of the old-time Spanish territory 

165 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

and the building which the governors occupied 
is still standing. And it was over this building 
on July 9th, 1846, that the marines from the 
United States Ship Portsmouth raised the stars 
and stripes to float forever in place of the Mexi- 
can flag. 

California has in her ruined missions and 
old Spanish traditions a touch of human antiq- 
uity that lends an added charm to this enchanted 
land. The atmosphere of sacred romance that 
hovers around England's abbeys is not wanting 
in the moss-grown, vine-covered ruins that are 
found in so many delightful spots in the Sunset 
State. The story of the mission is a fascinating 
one, from its inception in zeal and poverty and 
rise to affluence to its decadence and final aban- 
donment. The monk, always in the vanguard 
of Spanish exploration and settlement, came 
hither about the middle of the Eighteenth Cen- 
tury. The Franciscan order received a grant 
from the Spanish throne of a number of proper- 
ties in southern California. The first mission 
was founded near San Diego in 1769 by Junipero 
Serra, a monk of true piety and energetic char- 
acter. Others followed him and in all twenty-one 
missions were established, extending along the 
Pacific from San Diego to San Francisco. All 
of these today are in ruins or have disappeared 

166 



OTHER WONDERS 

except four, which still survive under the con- 
trol of the Catholic Church. The buildings were 
wonderfully well constructed, hard brick, hewn 
stone, tile roofs and heavy timbers being so 
carefully combined that they have well with- 
stood the ravages of time, though no doubt the 
equable climate has also contributed to their 
preservation. The old notion that the red man 
will not perform hard manual labor is contra- 
dicted here, for the work of building the missions 
was done by Indians under the direction of the 
monks — and hard work it was, for the stone had 
to be quarried and dressed, bricks moulded and 
burned, and the heavy timbers brought many 
miles, often on the men's shoulders. The sav- 
ages were reduced to a state of peonage, though 
it seems that their masters' policy was generally 
one of kindness and there were but one or two 
instances where an uprising against the priests 
occurred. Taken altogether, there are few other 
known instances where white men had so little 
trouble with the natives with whom they came 
in contact. The priests not only looked after 
the religious instruction of their charges, but 
taught them to engage in agriculture and such 
crude manufactures as were possible under the 
primitive conditions that existed. In time the 
mission properties became enormously valuable, 

167 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

their revenues from different sources reaching 
as much as $2,000,000 annually. But semi-civil- 
ization did not agree with the natives — it w^as 
the beginning of decadence among the Indian 
tribes that has rendered them practically extinct. 
The missions came to a sudden end w^hen their 
properties were confiscated by the Mexican Gov- 
ernment to recoup the depleted treasuries of 
Santa Ana in his struggles with the Texans and 
the United States. After the annexation of 
California the conditions were altogether unfav- 
orable to the rehabilitation of the old regime, 
which rapidly faded into a romantic memory. 
Of the three or four missions which still survive, 
Santa Barbara is the largest and best preserved, 
and San Gabriel is perhaps the best known, being 
on the regular rounds of the numberless tourists 
who visit the City of Angels. At the latter one 
may see much of the old order of things, save 
that the confiding native no longer toils and 
worships in the sacred precincts. There are 
many curious paintings and relics and a vineyard 
famous even in a land of vineyards. San Diego, 
the oldest of all, and San Luis Rey, the most 
beautifully situated, will prove the most inter- 
esting of those which have fallen into ruin. 

Like the English monks the Spanish padres, 
when locating their establishments, always se- 

168 




THE CEMETERY GARDEN, SANTA BAKliAKA MISSION, CALIFORNIA 
Courtesy Southern Pacific Railway 



OTHER WONDERS 

lected sites with delightful surroundings and 
commanding views of beautiful scenery — always 
in the most fertile valleys and adjacent to lake 
or river. Many of the California missions are 
within a short distance of the Pacific, whose 
dark blue waters are often visible through the 
arched cloisters, lending a crowning touch of 
beauty to the loveliness of the semi-tropical 
landscapes. And in sight of all of them, snow- 
capped mountains rear their majestic forms 
against a sky matched only by that of Italy 
itself. Fertile fields with flowers, fruit trees and 
palms, usually watered by irrigation as well as 
the winter rains, always surrounded the mission 
buildings, and, indeed, the Arcadia of the poets 
was well-nigh made a reality under the sway of 
the California padres. 

But I need not pursue farther the never- 
ending theme of the romance and loveliness of 
the Sunset State. The limit of my modest 
volume might easily be stretched into a whole 
library and much of the story still remain un- 
told. Truly, the American citizen who has 
never seen California has missed the rarest of 
his country's charms. 

In Arizona, aside from the Canyon region, 
there is much of weird beauty and interest. The 
great irrigation projects are constantly extend- 

169 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

ing the habitable spots throughout the territory, 
and it takes but the magic touch of water to 
make this sun-blighted desert burst into bloom 
and fruitfulness. In the Salt River Valley, a 
green oasis of some two thousand square miles, 
is situated Phoenix, the capital city, a pretty and 
progressive town which, with assured statehood, 
would seem to have an exceptional future. The 
Salt River Valley is a level plain, verdant with 
alfalfa fields, studded with palms and giant cot- 
tonwoods, and girt by distant mountains so blue 
and ethereal as to seem almost a part of cloud- 
land itself. Rain seldom falls and all the year 
long the sun shines in its full glory on this pleas- 
ant vale in the desert. The summers are hot, it 
is true, but the monotony of continual sunshine 
is neutralized by the verdure and bloom that one 
sees always and everywhere. 

In New Mexico there is also much to en- 
gage the attention of the observant traveler — 
far too much to admit even of mention in such a 
hurried outline as I am sketching. But one may 
not entirely pass over the old town of Santa Fe, 
which, strange to say, contests with St. Augus- 
tine for the honor of the oldest settlement of 
white man within the present limits of the 
United States. It was in 1605 — barely more 
than a century after the discovery by Columbus 

170 



OTHER WONDERS 

— that the gold-seeking cavaliers of Spain pene- 
trated into the mountain fastness, far inland, 
and founded with great ceremony the pretentious 
*'La Ciudad Real de la Santa Fe de San Fran- 
cisco," — the true city of the holy faith of St. 
Francis. In its unbroken history of more than 
three hundred years, seventy-six Spanish rulers 
and twenty American governors have succes- 
sively occupied the old palace — a long, one-story 
building with a square-pillared colonnade front- 
ing on the plaza. It is indeed a historic struct- 
ure, crowded with many priceless treasures — 
relics of its former occupants. "There are 
faded pictures of saints painted upon puma 
skins; figures laboriously wrought in wood to 
shadow forth the Nazarene; votive offerings of 
silver brought to the altar of Our Lady by those 
who had been healed of disease; rude stone gods 
of the heathen, domestic utensils and imple- 
ments of war. There, too, may be seen ancient 
maps of the new world on which California ap- 
pears as an island in the Pacific and the country 
at large confidently set forth with like grotesque 
inaccuracy." 

They will tell you that General Lew Wal- 
lace wrote the great American novel, "Ben 
Hur," in this old palace during the time he held 
the governorship of the territory, and while he is 

171 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

known to have done some work on the book in 
the Orient, there seems to be no doubt but that 
it occupied much of the time he spent in Santa Fe. 
One will find many other places of interest 
about the town — touches of that old-world antiq- 
uity and tradition that the average American 
town so sadly lacks confront the visitor every- 
where. The sturdy little adobe church of San 
Miguel claims, perhaps justly, the distinction of 
being the oldest place of Christian worship with- 
in the present limits of the United States. It 
stands in an aggregation of huts that crowd 
along the narrow winding lanes which serve as 
streets. It has been somewhat restored, it is 
true, but the walls, at least, are the same ones 
reared by the original builders. Near by is a 
humble adobe dwelling, still occupied, that the 
patriotic citizen will tell you is the oldest house 
in the United States, having been in existence 
as early as 1540, when an Indian pueblo occupied 
the site of the present town. It is reputed that 
Coronado came hither in course of his wander- 
ings and stopped for a time in this very hut, 
though of course the mythical element may have 
entered into this tradition. Be that as it may, 
old Santa Fe has so much of quaintness and so 
much of indisputable antiquity that no one who 
really desires to know the West can omit it from 

172 






J- 




OTHER WONDERS 

his itinerary. And added to these attractions 
it has a climate which for absence of extremes 
is perhaps unmatched in the entire country. 
Altogether, if Santa Fe were better known, the 
number of tourists who now visit the town would 
be multiplied manyfold. 

In the great Northwest there is much to de- 
light and interest. The Columbia is one of the 
most majestic of rivers and there are unequalled 
vistas along its valley which one need not leave 
the train to see. Especially delightful is the 
view from the great bridge near Portland, and 
one should be sure to take a daytime train when 
making this crossing. Portland is one of the 
most charming of the coast towns — the city of 
roses, as it is often styled from the almost year- 
long profusion of bloom that encompasses nearly 
every private house. The climate here is never 
severe; being tempered by the great Japan cur- 
rent, it is in many respects similar to that of the 
British Isles. If there is a little too much rain 
at seasons to please everyone, it is atoned for by 
the profusion of bloom and verdure. 

Seattle, which of late years has forged ahead 
of all her rivals and is threatening the supremacy 
of San Francisco itself, is still wrestling with 
the problems of rapid growth, and years will 
doubtless elapse ere the crudeness and confusion 

173 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

which are evident in many places will disappear. 
But it is breezy, pushing, full of the spirit of 
progress, with an unmatched harbor, so deep 
that they can wash the hills into it with power- 
ful hydraulic pressure, to save carting the dirt 
away — and it is needless to say that the future 
of the city is secure, whatever temporary re- 
verses it may meet with. It is dominated from 
all points of view by the snow-capped summit 
of Mount Ranier, the loftiest peak in the coast 
country. Its slopes are clothed with dense green 
pine forests and its summit white with snow the 
whole year round. What an inspiration it must 
be to those who see it daily and have in their 
souls enough of the poetical to feel the majesty 
and beauty of this sublimest of mountain peaks; 
glowing in the amber hues of morning, shrouded 
in the amethystine haze of sunset, bald and 
awful in the noonday glare, it stands always the 
embodiment of all that is most impressive and 
lovely in natural scenery. 

Nor can anyone say that he has seen the 
best of the picturesque grandeur of the Ameri- 
can continent who has never visited the Cana- 
dian Northwest. Along the line of the Canadian 
Pacific Railway is a succession of magnificent 
scenery which many contend is not surpassed 
by anything on the southern side of the border 

174 




> o 

Z E- 

M -° 

^ -of 



OTHER WONDERS 

line. A daylight journey through the section 
affords the opportunity of seeing the greater 
part of the scenic wonders, since the railway 
passes directly among them. There are moun- 
tains, canyons, lakes and mighty forests — all on 
a titanic scale that is indeed awe-inspiring. The 
beauty and grandeur seem to reach their culmi- 
nation in Lake Louise, and its surroundings, 
which is undoubtedly quite the equal of any 
mountain lake in the world. 

Old Mexico, which at the moment I write 
is involved in the throes of a revolutionary 
struggle, has been a favorite theme with our 
artist, and few will realize how deservedly its 
scenes have employed his brush save by a per- 
sonal visit to this Egypt of the West. Here are 
relics of a civilization more ancient and advanced 
than may be found elsewhere in America — a bar- 
barous civilization, perhaps, if the paradox may 
be allowed, but none the less of entrancing inter- 
est. One would hardly expect to find in the so- 
called New World a scene such as Mr. Moran 
portrays in the beautiful picture herewith, but 
this picturesque ruin is at Cuernavaca, a quaint 
old town near the capital city. The church dates 
from the time of Cortez and was built in antici- 
pation that the capital city would extend towards 
it and encompass it, but this never occurred. 

175 



THREE WONDERLANDS 

The whole composition, in its languorous, ro- 
mantic beauty, is more suggestive of Spain or 
Morocco than of America — the ruin against the 
glowing morning sky, the white-walled, many- 
towered town in the far distance, the stone 
arches of the bridge and the group of women in 
the foreground, all seem strangely out of har- 
mony with our preconceived ideas of what we 
may find on our own continent. And it is only 
typical of the many surprises that the tourist will 
find in our sister republic, which, with restored 
tranquillity and a more flexible and democratic 
government, is bound to become more than ever 
the goal of the intelligent traveler from the 
States. 



176 



INDEX 



Absaroka Range, 24, 36. 
Adamana Station, 147. 
Amethyst Mountain, 35. 

B 

Bagby Dam, 97. 
Beaver Lake, 44. 
Ben Hur, 171. 
Black Canyon, 162. 
Blackfeet Indians, 49-50. 
Boulder Bed, 121. 
Bradshaw Mountains, 161. 
Bridal Veil Fall, 64, 95. 
Bright Angel Amphitheatre, 

160. 
Bright Angel Inn, 120. 
Bright Angel Trail, 115, 

119-120. 
Buckskin Mountains, 160. 
Bunnell, Dr., 101. 
Bunsen, 18. 

c 

Calavaras Grove, 88-89. 
Canyon Hotel, 15, 129. 
Canyon Diablo, 155. 
Canyon of the Colorado, 21. 



Canyon (Of the Rio Virgin, 

134, 136. 
Canyon of the Yellowstone, 

28, 30, 113. 
Cathedral Rocks, 64. 
Cathedral Spires, 24. 
Clark, Galen, 86. 
Clouds Rest, 68, 76. 
Coconino Forest, 130, 161. 
Colorado River, 112, 116, 

119-120, 122, 124, 136- 

137, 140, 157, 161. 
Colter, John, 19, 50-51. 
Columbia River, 22, 173. 
Columbus, 20, 170. 
Coronado, 129, 135, 172. 
Cortez, 135, 175. 

Crow Indians, 49. 

Crystal and Rainbow Forest, 

148. 
Cuernavaca, 175. 

D 

Dellenbaugh, Capt. Fred S., 

138, 159. 

Del Monte Hotel, 164-165. 

Del Portal, 96. 

Devils Corkscrew, 123. 12"). 

Doane, Capt. 49, 54. 

Don Pedro del Tovar. 129. 



177 



INDEX. 



Eagle Peak, 76. 

El Capitan, 64, 68, 75, 101. 

El Portal, 60, 63, 81, 91, 

95, 105. 
El Tovar, 10, 112, 120, 126, 

129, 131. 
Emerald Pool, 13. 
Evarts, 55. 
Excelsior Geyser, 19, 53. 



Firehole River, 22, 53. 
Flagstaff, 147, 152, 159. 
Fort Yellowstone, 32, 38. 
Fountain Geyser, 53. 
Fountain Hotel, 15. 
Four Peaks, 160. 
Fra Marcos, 111. 

G 

Gardiner, 3-6, 45. 

Glacier Point, 67, 69, 74-75, 

78. 
Glacier Point Hotel, 73. 
Glacier Point Trail, 72, 76, 

94, 100, 106, 120. 
Golden Gate, 39, 164. 
Grand Canyon, 111-113, 115- 

117, 119-120, 123, 129- 
^ 130, 132, 134, 136, 159, 

162. 
Grand River Canyon, 162. 
Green River, 136, 139. 
Grizzly Giant, 83-84. 
Gulf of California, 140. 



H 

Half Dome, 67-68, 72, 76, 

100. 
Happy Isles, 71. 
Harvey, Fred, 130. 
Harvey Hotels, Fred, 111. 
Hayden, Dr., 38. 
Heart Lake, 26. 
Higgins, C. A., 149. 
Hoodoos, Thie, 39. 
Hopi, The, 157. 
Hopi House, 127-128. 
Hopi Point, 116-117. 
Humphreys Peak, 159. 
Hurricane Mountains, 161. 
Hutchings, Mr. A. C, 87-88, 

103-104. 



I 

Illilouette, Canyon of, 73. 
Indian Garden, 115, 122. 
Inspiration Point, 30, 93. 
Ives, Lieutenant, 136. 



Jacob's Ladder, 125. 
Juniper Range, 161. 
Junipero Serra, 166. 



K 

Kaibab Plateau, 160. 
King's River Forest, 89. 
Kipling, Rudyard, 28. 



178 



INDEX. 



Laguna, 156. 

Lake Colonial Hotel, 14, 16. 

Lake Hotel, 5, 14-15, 23-24, 

27, 29, 45. 
Le Conte, Prof., 100. 
Lewis and Clark Expedition, 

49. 
Lewis Lake, 26. 
Liberty Cap, 72. 
Livingston, 6, 21. 
Long Beach, 164. 
Lower Falls, 54. 

M 

Mammoth Hot Springs, 4-5, 

15, 32, 37-39, 43, 54. 
Mariposa Grove, 61, 82, 84, 

86, 105. 
Merced Fall, 97. 
Merced River, 63, 108. 
Merced River Canyon, 60, 

96. 
Merced Valley, 102-103. 
Meteorite Mountain, 153- 

155. 
Mexican Gulf. 163. 
Mirror Lake, 59, 69, 75. 
Mogollon Plateau, 160. 
Molcis, 157-158. 
Monos, 103. 
Moran, Thos., 28, 32, 64, 

131, 156. 
Morning-Glory Spring, 13. 
Mount Broderick, 72. 
Mount of the Holy Cross, 

162. 



Mount Rainer, 174. 

Mount Washburn, 32-33, 54. 

Mount Washington, 113. 

Mud Volcano, 53. 

Muir, John, 32, 83-84, 87, 

89, 94, 101, 148. 
Muirhead, Dr., 165, 

N 

Navajo Reservation, 160. 
Nevada Falls, 69, 71-72, 76. 
Norris Basin, 3, 5, 13, 32. 
North Sigillaria Forest, 148. 

o 

Oak Creek Canyon, 161. 
Obsidian Cliff, 44. 
Old Faithful Geyser, 19-20. 
Old Faithful Inn, 10-12, 14, 

16, 29, 40, 45, 129. 
Overhanging Rock, 74. 



Pacific Ocean, 163. 
Painted Desert, 160. 
Pasadena, 164. 
Powell, Major John W^esley, 

136, 138-139. 
Prismatic Lake, 53. 

R 

Raymond. 105. 

Redwood, 82. 

Riverside, 23. 

Rocky Mountain Range, 41, 

141, 162. 
Royal Gorge, 162. 



179 



INDEX. 



St. Augustine, 170. 

Salt Lake City, 3. 

San Diego, 16 8. 

San Francisco, 173. 

San Francisco Peak, 161. 

San Gabriel, 168. 

San Joaquin Valley, 97. 

San Luis Rey, 168. 

San Miguel, 172. 

Santa Anna, 168. 

Santa Barbara, 164, 168. 

Santa Catalina, 164. 

Santa Fe, 170, 172. 

Santa Fe Trail, 111. 

Seattle, 173. 

Sentinel Dome, 65, 68. 

Sentinel Hotel, 65, 6 8, 95. 

Sentinel Rock, 64. 

Sequoia, 79, 82-83, 87. 

Sequoia Gigantea, 87. 

Sequoia Sempervirens, 87. 

Seven Cities of Cibola, 135, 

157, 
Shiva Temple, 121. 
Shoshone Lake, 26-27. 40. 
Shoshone Point, 40-41. 
Sierra Forests, 78, 83. 
Sleeping Giant, 24. 
Stanton, Lieut. R. B., 140. 
Sulphur Mountain, 52. 
Sunset and Peachblow Crater, 

161. 
Superstition Mountains, 160. 

T 

Ten-ie-ya, 102. 
Tetons, The, 40-41. 



Three Forks, 52. 

Thumb Station, 5, 23. 

Tolte Gorge, 162. 

Tower Falls, 32, 36-37, 54. 

Twin Sisters, 148. 

u 

Upper Geyser Basin, 12, 22- 
23, 27, 55. 

V 

Vado de los Padres, 136. 
Vernal Falls, 69, 71-72, 76, 

100. 
Virgin River, 136. 

w 

Wallace, General Lew, 171. 
Walnut Canyon, 151. 
Washburn, General, 54. 
Wawona, 67, 78, 85, 91, 105. 
Wylie Permanent Camps, 6. 

Y 

Yellowstone Hotel, 3. 
Yellowstone Lake, 18, 23, 

25-26, 34, 42, 46, 53-54. 
Yellowstone Park, 1, 6, 14, 

17-18, 21-22, 27, 41, 45, 

104, 123-124, 162. 
Yellowstone River, 52, 57. 
Yosemite, 59, 61, 75, 104, 

113, 123, 162. 
Yosemite Fall, 65, 75. 



Zuni, 157. 



180 



JAN 23 1912 



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